When Worlds Collide
by Dark Phoenix Reborn
Summary: Take three timetravelling aliens, one secretive halfbreed, and one inquisitive human, throw them together into high school life, and what do you get? Read on and find out. Gohan x Videl, plus plenty of OC's. Sequel to The Phoenix Chronicles, series 2 of 3
1. First Impressions

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 1 - First Impressions

Disclaimer: Not that these mean anything, but I'm going to make a blanket disclaimer now, and save myself the trouble later. I do not own Dragonball Z, or any of the movies, songs, or anything else copy written that may or may not appear in this fic at some point in time. You wanna sue me? Be my guest. You can't get blood out of a stone.

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"NOOOOO!"

The injured black-haired girl turned her broken body away from the explosion that marked the destruction of the one who shared her soul. Tears streaked down her dirt and blood encrusted face, cutting lines through the filth, as she turned her head towards the eerily familiar face of her lover's killer.

"Why are you doing this?" She sobbed, "What did we ever do to you?"

"It's nothing personal." He replied, his hollow voice as familiar to her as his face, "But don't cry my dear, I'll spare you the hand fate has dealt me. I won't keep you from the one you love. You shall be reunited with him..." He raised his hand, forming the blast that would end her life, "...on the other side!"

Her last sight before the blast extinguished the flame of life from her mortal body was that of his face.

The face of her killer.

The face of her lover.

The face of the Saiyan warrior Kapskaen.

o-o-o

"Rrrrraaaaghhhh!"

The young woman screamed in frustration, throwing her bag with all her might and sending it flying across her bedroom. The maids and servants had kept out of her way as she'd stormed her way up, the scowl on her face alone indicating the state of her anger, not to mention the venerable thundercloud following in her wake. She stood there panting, her vision practically red with anger, but in a moment of clarity she decided to take her wrath out on the equipment in the gym instead of her room; she had to sleep here.

Her fists slammed into the punching bag with such force it would have knocked it flying were it not secured to both the roof and ceiling, and after this quick test she rained blow after blow into the sand-filled stress relief, her pigtails flying around with the force of her punches.

How dare he! How dare that insufferable, arrogant... bastard of a man treat her like that! She was Videl Satan, Daughter of the Saviour of the World, and herself the resident hero of Satan City, and that cocky bastard treated her like she was nothing! No, worse, he treated her like she was something he scraped off his boot.

First, he disrespected her father, in front of the whole class no less! Then, he had the audacity to disrespect her, not sixty seconds after. Actually, now that she thought of it, it _may_ have been longer than sixty seconds after; he had been laughing a long time between. And those two little... **bitches** he had with him, they just stood there and laughed along with him; oh sure, one of them had reprimanded him, but it was obvious she didn't really mean it.

She paused in her beating, taking a deep breath. She shouldn't say that about the new girls. They were actually quite, well, nice, once you got past the first impression they made on the class, and just because she was mad at him was no reason to drag them into it, even if he was supposedly dating one of them and related to the other.

She scoffed; she didn't buy that for a minute. He had **spiky** **black** hair, did they really expect her to believe he was related to the straight-haired redhead, and, at the same time, dating the black long-haired girl who, while still looking different, looked a _lot_ more like him than the younger of the two? But why would they lie? What reason was there?

She screamed in frustration once more before resuming her pummelling of the defenceless punching bag; all these uncertainties weren't helping her temper any. The man was a walking mystery, pure and simple, and those two girls weren't much better; and she'd thought the _last_ new kid was bad!

Gohan, the perfect test-score genius that had managed to jump 30 feet into the air and catch what would have been a home run, and had then managed to completely destroy a baseball while batting; she didn't care what he or the teacher claimed, she _saw_ the ball explode when the bat he swung hit it. Compared to these new three, Gohan seemed almost normal! Almost.

She paused in mid-punch as something occurred to her; Gohan. He looked _so_ much like the new guy. There were enough differences to make it obvious that they weren't related, but never-the-less they had similar hair, similar builds, similar ages, and, if today's baseball game was any indication of what they could do, similar physical prowess too. It was obvious to her now that whatever was off about Gohan was off about the new guy as well, and thus if she could find one of them out, it'd lead her to the other.

Maybe it'd lead her to the identity of Saiyaman while she was at it. She resumed again as her thoughts continued. Saiyaman showed up the same day Gohan did, she knew that wasn't a coincidence. If the police report was accurate, the new guy had stopped a bank robbery this morning on his way to school, but Saiyaman didn't show up. That lead her to the conclusion he knew Saiyaman; he couldn't _be_ Saiyaman, because he wasn't the right height, or the same build. Besides, from what she saw of him, he wouldn't be caught dead in that green tunic and trashy orange bucket-helmet.

She gave this a bit more thought. Saiyaman, as he demonstrated repeatedly, was able to fly, to lift strangely heavy objects (like buses), and to fire these beams of light out of his hands that seemed to explode. She didn't care what her father claimed, there was _no way_ those could be fake; after two weeks of seeing the guy in action, she'd come close enough to one of those beams of light to feel the heat radiating off it. She had doubts as to the claims of it being from some kind of weapon, so that left her with rumours of ancient martial arts techniques. Maybe if the new guy knew Saiyaman, he knew these techniques as well.

Gohan was her prime suspect for Saiyaman's true identity, and always had been; it was too convenient, and Videl didn't believe in coincidences. He seemed to know the new kids quite well too, judging by how quickly he was joking and laughing with them. The new guy had called Gohan something too, something that sounded almost like a nickname. Rayem-fu-penah-te? Something like that. She had no idea what it was supposed to mean, but by the way Gohan looked caught between a scowl and a smile, it was an insult of some sort said in the tone of good friends. And what was it Gohan had replied? Oom-te peay-ku-dayen-te? Another nickname no doubt, judging by the smile-cum-smirk on the new guy's face. If Gohan really was Saiyaman, that would explain how the new kid knew him; he knew the man behind the mask.

Those two practically radiated mystery; it was so thick she could almost taste it. The girls weren't as bad, both being far more open and talkative, but there was still obviously something, or several something's, that they weren't saying. What irked her was that they weren't lying either; she could almost literally smell a lie. No, what made life hell was that they danced around the truth with the grace and precision of a pro ballet dancer.

The four of them were challenging her in ways she'd never been challenged; physically, mentally, and psychologically all at once. But Videl Satan was never one to back down from a challenge; so few people had ever challenged her at anything, she now revelled in them. They had thrown down the gauntlet, and she was determined to win the duel of minds.

A smirk slowly spread across her face, as her punching speed increased, and she ran the days events through her head once more. The four new kids, Gohan, Kaen, Pi, and Kat, would regret messing with her...

o-o-o

--Earlier that day--

The pigtailed girl sat in her first class of the week, maths, between the new boy Gohan and her best friend Erasa, chewing on her pen as she silently fumed; well, she was trying to fume, but the teacher's boring, droning voice, which had the amazing power to put insomniacs to sleep, made that difficult. She had been called by the police this morning for help at a bank robbery, no surprise there, but by the time she'd arrived there the situation was resolved, the crooks already being loaded into the back of the wagon.

Now, she _knew_ the cops couldn't have done this on their own; they practically redefined the word incompetent. However, this didn't have the hallmarks of Saiyaman's work; it was too... messy. A scowl on her face at her time being wasted, she'd demanded answers right then and there about what happened, and been told that some guy in black and red had shown up, knocked the shooters out in seconds, then put his fist through the front of the fleeing getaway car and tore the engine out; the fact the car had come tearing around the corner at 80 kph hadn't made a difference, apparently.

When they'd gone up to thank him for the help, he had just scowled and replied, "I didn't do it for you. One of the stray bullets those morons were firing almost hit my girl. Besides, I didn't feel the people inside should have to suffer because the lot of you were too scared, incompetent, or both, to do anything about it." Then he'd walked off without another word, meeting up with two girls a little way down the road, and walking off.

And so, here she sat, infuriated that someone else had shown up to save the day, again. Sure, she was happy the people were safe, but now another guy was moving in on her turf; this was _her_ city dammit, and she didn't care whether this was a one-off or not, he should've just minded his own business like everyone else and left it to the pros. The only ray of sunshine had been that Saiyaman hadn't shown up.

The droning litany was broken by a knock on the door, and the teacher turned to it in shock for a second before declaring, his voice somewhat more energised than before (which wasn't saying much), "Oh, that's right, we have several new students starting today. Come in."

The door opened roughly, slamming into the wall with the sound of plaster cracking, and in strode a dark haired guy, dressed in mostly black bar the red muscle shirt, with flame-like hair, and trailing behind him were a redhead girl in a sleeveless black top and matching pants, and a dark haired girl in a green sleeveless top that looked identical to the redhead's, and jean shorts. All three of them wore black fingerless gloves, and all three wore some form of long coat, the former two wearing matching black trench coats, while the latter's was a dark green.

The girls in the class instantly started swooning over the new guy; apparently, he radiated just enough 'badass' to appeal to everyone without looking like a criminal. The guys in the class weren't much better with the new girls, alternating their drooling between them. The only exceptions to this were Videl, of course, and, surprisingly for her, Gohan; he seemed torn between worrying about something, and being, dare she say, _pleased_. For their part, the new kids didn't seem fazed by the attentions of their peers, although the guy did wrap one arm protectively around the dark haired girl's waist and scowl.

Ignorant of the current state of the class, the teacher said, "Why don't you tell us a bit about yourselves?"

The redhead spoke first, her voice full of far too much energy for this time of morning, "Hiya, I'm Katrina Avarrdo, but everyone just calls me Kat. This wall of muscle," she indicated the flame-haired guy, "is my big brother. The three of us are from out of town, and I look forward to meeting all of you." Apparently that was all she was going to say; she seemed friendly enough though

The dark haired girl was next, "My name's Pi Kellre. As Kat said, we're new in town. Before anyone asks, I'll save you the time by answering now: no, I am _not_ single. We," she indicated the guy as well, "have been going out since before most of you were _aware_ there was an opposite sex, let alone what the differences were, and that won't be changing any time soon." That, too, appeared to be all she was going to say; while not nearly as bubbly or energetic as the redhead, Kat, she still seemed quite nice.

Finally, the guy spoke, and what he said shocked more than one person, "My name is Kaen, but you worthless maggots may address me as sir! I will warn you all once, so I suggest you pass it on: If I so much as catch a whisper of a rumour that one of you insignificant, drooling, testosterone-riddled morons are even considering thinking of contemplating possibly trying anything with my girl," the arm around her waist tightened a little, "I'll rip your arms clean out of your sockets and pummel you with them, then I'll get angry." What gave the statement it's true impact wasn't so much what he said, but how he said it; cool, calm, collected. He could have been telling you the weather for all of the emotion in his words.

In the stunned silence that followed, Kat giggled, "He'll do it too; I've seen him do it before."

Pi elbowed him in the ribs sharply, not that he even seemed to flinch, "Hey, play nice."

"No, the sooner these drones know where they are on the food chain, the better," He replied.

The first to shake herself from stunned silence, Videl stood up, declaring, "You won't be hurting anyone as long as I'm around."

Raising an eyebrow, the arrogant man, Kaen, asked, "Oh really? Who're you to be making such bold statements, hmm?"

This stunned her again for a few seconds; they didn't know who she was? 'Ah, right,' she thought to herself, 'they're from out of town, they wouldn't know.' "I'm Videl Satan." She declared boastingly, waiting for the realisation to come to them; it didn't. "Daughter of Hercule Satan?" Still nothing. "The city's named after him?"

Finally Kat's face lit up in realisation, but of what was a little surprising, as she said, "Oh, I know, isn't Hercule that guy who's always on TV, with the ugly brown gi, and the stupid haircut?"

Videl was struck dumb. No one had ever phrased it quite like that before. "Uh, yeah, that's him." What the three of them did next stunned the class worse than Kaen's little speech; they looked at each other for a moment, than burst out into fits of raucous laughter. So hard was their laughter that both girls had trouble standing up, having to rely on Kaen to keep them from falling onto their ass. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Gohan smirking slightly to himself; she made a mental note to grill him about it later.

The formerly stoic man tried to choke back his laughter, failing miserably. He did, however, manage to get out, "Why... should that buffoon... being your father... frighten me?" between peels of laughter.

Getting angry with their disrespect of her father, as ill-gotten and undeserving as she herself believed it to be, she stomped her foot, shouting, "Hey! Show some respect! He saved the world from Cell!"

Managing to reign in her laughter, Kat asked, "What's a Cell?"

Again Videl was struck dumb; did these three live under a rock these past 7 years? And again, she noticed Gohan smirking to himself slightly, and she barely managed to catch him muttering something about 'filling them in on the details', but there was plenty of time for that later. "Um, you know, big green thing, kinda grasshopper like, threatened to blow up the Earth..."

"OH! Right, _that_ Cell." Pi replied, before, once again, the three of them burst into laughter. The class didn't know how to react; on the one hand, they were disrespecting their hero Hercule, but on the other, that guy looked scary, and any scary looking guy that laughed at Hercule had to have a damn good reason.

Managing to reign in his laughter faster this time, Kaen asked, "Girl, are you always this stupid, or are you making a special effort today?"

The look on her face, caught between anger and embarrassment, must have been amusing, because he relapsed a second time, but was cut short when Pi elbowed him again, chiding him in some language Videl couldn't understand, "E dumt oui du bmyo hela. E lysa rana du syga vneahtc, yht dryd'mm hajan rybbah ev oui tuh'd paryja." He did stop laughing, but couldn't help the smirk on his face, or stop the occasional chuckle.

Stunned by the display, it wasn't until the amused Kaen cleared his throat that the teacher realised they were still standing there, and went to assign them seats. However, while there were three seats available, none of them were together. Kaen was having none of it though, grinning and pointing three fingers up at a group of students in the back row; ironically, the three seated behind Gohan, Videl, and Erasa, who were in the second last row.

"Move." He barked. When one of them opened his mouth to protest, Kaen just glared at them, and Videl found herself shivering despite herself; he looked imposing enough normally, when he was glaring he was downright scary. She would have been shocked to know that was merely his 'annoyed' glare, and had yet to dip into his repertoire. The three students behind them couldn't move fast enough to clear off, tripping over each other as they hurried out of the seats.

With a satisfied smirk on his face, he began walking up to the newly vacated seats; Videl just noticed that he had two bags over his shoulder instead of one, whereas Pi had none, so he was obviously carrying her bag for her. She was a little stunned that the imposing figure was actually gentleman enough for such an act, but she was even more shocked when he passed Gohan, who had been holding his head in his hands ever since Kaen's speech, and said mock-cheerfully, "Morning Rymv-Pnaat."

Gohan just groaned, in an effort to cover up the laugher threatening to burst out, raising his head a little to reply, "Same Umt Pycdynt."

Videl narrowed her eyes at Gohan as the new students sat down behind her; so, the old new kid knew the next lot of new kids. How? Videl didn't know, but she was determined to find out. Even more than ever, she was determined to uncover all of Gohan's secrets, come hell or high water.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Okay, first thing's first: this fic will _not_ be a Mary Sue/Gary Stu style story. I have no intention of having any of the characters wind up stronger than any canon characters, as I myself hate the idea of the Mary Sue character.

Secondly, I have already written all chapters for this story, but I'm not going to be posting them all at once. Now, before anyone jumps to conclusions – yes, I'm talking to you – I am not going to be 'ransoming' them off for reviews; like the Mary Sue, this pisses me off to no end. I fully intend on updating once or twice a week, every week. I merely established the chapter buffer to relieve some pressure, to allow me to update quicker, and to give me a little time to work on the one-shots and chapters for _after_ this series. That, and I _would_ like to get, and be able to reply to, feedback, if anyone wishes to leave it. On that note, this entire series came about from me watching a movie too many times in one night, and having a 'good idea'. If you reckon you know which movie it was, why don't ya let me know.

Thirdly, this series will make use of quite a few original characters, many of which were from my first story, The Phoenix Chronicles (story id 2029435). Now, I don't expect anyone to actually _read_ it, and of those that do, I don't expect you to review it, just know that if you _don't_ read it, you might be confused as to some of the characters. For those who are interested, the only real reason I posted it in its entirety at all is because I had the idea for _this_ fic, and the information therein was needed.

Finally, I used Al Bhed in lieu of using **"this"** for Saiyan, so here are the translations:  
Rayem-fu-penah-te Rymv-Pnaat Half-Breed  
Oom-te peay-ku-dayen-te Umt Pycdynt Old Bastard  
E dumt oui du bmyo hela. E lysa rana du syga vneahtc, yht dryd'mm hajan rybbah ev oui tuh'd paryja.  
I told you to play nice. I came here to make friends, and that'll never happen if you don't behave.

I don't doubt I'll continue this trend for parts mainly from Videl's POV, as she's not meant to understand it, so in the same way you'll often see Japanese words like Onna in other fanfics, you'll frequently see some Al Bhed words in mine. Deal with it.

This chapter was pre-read by my good mate Ninja (user id 63422), a man much more talented than I.


	2. First Day

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 2 - First Day

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He watched his mate in silence as she took her time finishing off the remnants of what was once a proud race. Ever since she had turned three, the two of them had been inseparable, even going on missions together. They never needed a team either, regardless of the expected resistance; together, the pair of them were unstoppable. So far, no race had even come close to harming either of them, and this time was no different.

Suddenly, the little prickle he'd been feeling at the edge of his senses became a blaring warning; his scouter didn't show anything, but he _knew_ something was wrong, so he charged towards her, tackling her to the ground as he shouted, "DOWN!"

No sooner had he done so when a blast sailed past where she had stood, easily large enough to injure her quite severely, and vaporised the natives she'd been fighting.

She opened her mouth, quite probably to begin a scathing remark for his interruption, when she saw the destruction that single blast had caused. Somehow, even having never seen it, she knew it was for her.

Standing up, and offering her his hand to help her do the same, he called out, "Show yourself you coward!"

"If you wish," a voice echoed back, a very familiar voice.

She gasped when she saw the man who'd appeared from the fog, and he found himself gaping as well, as he stammered out, "What? Impossible!"

"Well what is possible then? Because this is happening." The figure replied, an eerily familiar smirk on his face, one the young warrior and his partner knew all too well.

With a quick nod to each other they wasted no time, powering and firing their best attacks at the newcomer, who made no effort to dodge. The why of that became painfully clear soon enough, as, just as the blasts hit, a blue field shimmered into visibility around him, dispersing the energy of the attacks harmlessly. As the light from their attacks started to fade they attacked, lashing out with punches and kicks in synch, but he swatted them both away like insects.

"You're strong," the outsider said somewhat proudly, "but not strong enough. Don't worry though, I'll put that strength of yours to good use." Now he wasted no time, charging an attack that dwarfed the three of them easily, and hurling it at them.

He just held his mate tenderly, pressing her face against his chest so she wouldn't see her death coming; they weren't afraid to die, but that didn't mean they wanted to either. And in this final moment of romantic embrace, the last emotion he felt before the attack erased him from this universe was irony. Irony that, out of all the opponents the two had fought in their short lives, the only person able to kill either of them _was_ one of them.

'After all', the Saiyan warrior Kapskaen mused to himself, 'how many people can say they were killed by themself?'

o-o-o

The teacher's droning voice seemed to echo around the room, and Videl found herself having trouble staying awake, but Mr. Wick had that effect on people; he could take a boring subject like algebra, and make ripping one's nails out with a pair of pliers seem exciting in comparison.

A quick look to her right showed that the token jock Sharpener was fast asleep, drooling onto his textbook, but that was nothing new; he was always falling asleep, and the teacher had long since realised that nothing he could do would change that. Beside him, Erasa seemed to be honestly trying to do the work; underneath that blonde hair and ditzy mask, Erasa was actually quite smart when she wanted to be. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the new girl Kat working diligently as well; she did look tired though.

Looking to her left now, she noticed Gohan putting up the guise of working, when really he was obviously working on something different; she didn't recognise the symbols on the papers in front of him, but no doubt it was homework for something. He didn't need this class anyway, judging on how he'd acted this past fortnight; in fact, she wondered why he was here at all, he certainly seemed smart enough to be in college, despite his minor arrogance.

Behind him was the other new guy, Kaen. He looked like he was sleeping sitting up, or maybe he was meditating; she didn't really think anyone meditated anymore, but regardless, he looked no less threatening with his eyes closed and a somewhat peaceful look on his face. She wouldn't admit it out loud, or even to herself, but she _was_ a bit scared of him; there was just something about him that made her more scared of him than of any of the criminals she'd helped put away. Similarly, Gohan was kind of scary to her as well, but there was just... something about him that got her past this instinctual fear. She didn't know what it was, but she was determined to find out.

Apparently the teacher noticed Kaen's current state too, as he called out, "Mr. Avarrdo, if you know the material so well, perhaps you can answer the problem on the board?"

"42," he replied, not even opening his eyes.

"What did you say?" Mr. Wick asked, something between shocked and angry.

"In that problem, x equals 7, y equals 6, and the equation simplifies down to x times y, ergo, the answer is 42," he replied, in the sort of tone a tutor would give a particularly thick student, as he finally opened his eyes.

"I didn't mean for you to guess Mr. Avarrdo! Now, what is the real answer?" Mr. Wick asked, getting annoyed at the new guy.

"But sir, 42 _is_ the answer to that problem," Gohan supplied, a smirk starting to form on his face. The smirk seemed to broaden as he saw how long it took the teacher to reach the same answer the pair of them had in seconds.

"How did you know that?" their maths teacher demanded.

"Simple. I have very sensitive hearing, and I could 'hear' the patterns the chalk made." he replied. A matching smirk formed on his face as he added, "Besides, the first answer is _always_ 42."

Gohan snorted back a laugh, causing Videl to glare at him suspiciously; he seemed so different around these three than he had been the past two weeks. Sure, he'd been a smart-ass then too, but he tended to keep to himself and say no more than required.

Her glare didn't go unnoticed by one Pi Kellre, who started to smile to herself at the display, but remained silent, content, for now, to watch how things played out.

"Pimmcred," Gohan remarked, keeping his voice low enough so that only the three at the back, and Videl, could hear. He _knew_ Kaen couldn't 'hear' the problem; if anything, Pi had told him. Still, it was rather amusing to see Kaen toying with the teacher, and he wondered why he'd never done it himself. Kaen, like Gohan, had done everything resembling maths, and mastered it, by age 8 at the latest, so they needed this class about as much as Vegeta needed one more spandex training suit.

Videl tossed Gohan another suspicious glare, but before she could ask what he meant the teacher interrupted again, "Alright then, if you're so smart, what's the answer to this problem?" Saying this, he wrote a new question on the board, one he was obviously making up on the spot.

He'd just finished writing the last number on the board when Kaen answered, "Easy, x is 9, y is 3, z is 5, and w is 7."

"You forgot the remainder," Gohan again supplied, "x doesn't divide evenly there."

He rolled his eyes, both at Gohan and the shocked look on the teacher's face. "Fine, x is 9 _and one ninth_. Happy?" Kaen replied dryly

"Ecstatic." Gohan answered in the same tone, a grin on his face.

"Wise-ass."

"Lack-wit."

Videl watched the two of them trade insults, a mild look of shock and surprise on her face; sure, this was by no means the most shocking event thus far today, but it was still far from normal. There was no spite, no malice, no negative emotions at all she could find in the way these two bandied taunts; it was more like a friendly rivalry. This required more investigation.

The bell rang, and the teacher gathered his notes and scurried out of the room as fast as his aging legs could carry him; obviously, he was eager to be away from the new student. Videl rounded on Gohan, and was just about to launch into her pre-prepared tirade in the interlude between teachers when said new student interrupted, calling out to Gohan, "Right, so what happens now?"

Turning around to face him, Gohan called back, "Give me a look at your timetable and I'll tell you." Kaen did just that, and after a quick glance over it Gohan added, "Okay, generally in this school the students stay where they are and the teachers rotate, probably to cut back on the traffic in the hallways. The only exceptions are those students who either don't do all the same subjects, or those who do subjects requiring different rooms, like Chemistry. You, however, and I assume all three of you do the same courses," he paused, waiting for all three to nod before continuing, "well, all three of you are just in this room for the whole day same as me, except for PE of course."

Kat just shrugged, "Easy enough I suppose."

Pi smirked a little, saying, "Well Gohan, aren't you going to introduce us to your friends?"

Gohan just rolled his eyes a little, to Videl's great annoyance, and said, "The guy on the end's Sharpner; just ignore him, we all do. The girl next to him is Erasa, and you know Videl."

Kat and Pi held their hands out for Erasa and Videl respectively, saying, "It's nice to meet you" simultaneously. Also simultaneously, the four girls shook hands, and Videl and Erasa's eyes nearly bugged out of their heads at the grip the new girls had. Again together, they retracted their hands, saying apologetically as one, "Sorry about that..." before looking at each other and grinning. All in all, it was kinda creepy.

Videl was again about to launch into her tirade, when again Kaen interrupted, this time chuckling and saying, "E lyh'd pameaja oui'na dryd vuum Satan'c tyikrdan. E's cinbnecat ra ghaf frana du cdelg ed."

Videl narrowed her eyes, glaring at him, growling, "What did you say?" She'd only managed to hear the word 'Satan' in that mess, but she could tell by both his tone and expression that whatever he said, it was far from flattering.

Before he could say anything, Erasa asked, "What language is that? I've never heard it before."

Now came one of the things Gohan was afraid of when the three of them first walked into the class: one of the many questions about their past. He wasn't sure that they'd be as discreet as he'd made sure he was. Sure, he wasn't ashamed of his heritage, but he didn't want the people around here to know about it; he was trying to fit in somewhat.

His fears were unfounded, however, as Kaen replied, "It's our native tongue, although I suppose you could probably call it more of a regional or tribal dialect. The three of us hail from a fairly secluded city a fair ways south and west of here, but we left a long time ago in search of adventure, and eventually settled down in the 438."

Videl narrowed her eyes again; he was telling the truth, she could tell that much, but there were enough holes in his story you could drive a herd of elephants through them without touching the sides. Erasa may have been happy with that answer, but she wasn't, and while he was answering questions she might as well pose a few of her own. "If it's _your_ native tongue, how does Gohan know it? For that matter, how does he know _you_? Why settle down in the 438 mountain area? Why come to this school? Was that you at the robbery this morning? And what the HELL did you say to me before?"

He grinned, although it was really more of a smirk. "Gohan knows because he wanted to learn, simple as that. We met him some ten years ago, but because of our travels we fell out of contact until recently. We live in the 438 because Gohan's family's near there, and, while we wanted to be fairly close by, we didn't want to be neighbours. We came here because Gohan went here, and Pi wanted to come. Simple as that." He pointedly avoided answering the last two questions, choosing to simply smirk bastardly instead.

She growled at him, "Answer me dammit!"

He just kept smirking at her, but he did say, "Peda sa meddma kenm." Kat and Pi started giggling, and Gohan had to choke back laughter, but he actually _did_ begin to choke as Kaen added, "Ouin syda'c y vaecdo uha, vun y risyh."

Videl was shocked to see the normally calm and collected Gohan start spluttering and coughing, not to mention the massive blush that filled his face as he exclaimed, "My WHAT!"

He was saved from answering, however, as the next teacher entered, and the class settled down into another boring lecture. The class was more than a little shocked at Gohan's outburst, but it was far from the least normal thing that had happened so far today, and one thing was clear; once the teacher entered the room, the time for idle talk ended. Of course, this rarely happened, but this particular teacher, their physics teacher, was a particular hard-ass about talking in class.

And so Videl resumed her silent fuming, occasionally casting glares Gohan's way, to the amusement of the three behind her. She had more questions than answers, and even the answers she had lead to more questions. It was enough to make her scream in frustration, and she would have done so too, regardless of the teacher in the room, if she didn't believe that they _wanted_ her to do so, and above all, she would not give them what they wanted. She would unravel this mystery if it killed her, and Kami help anyone that stood in her way.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Pummcred - Bullshit  
E lyh'd pameaja oui'na dryd vuum Satan'c tyikrdan. E's cinbnecat ra ghaf frana du cdelg ed. -  
I can't believe you're that fool Satan's daughter. I'm surprised he knew where to stick it.  
Peda sa meddma kenm. - Bite me little girl.  
Ouin syda'c y vaecdo uha, vun y risyh. - Your mate's a feisty one, for a human.

On a more personal note, I'm glad to hear that people like this story so far. Thanks for the feedback. This chapter, like the one before it, and like those after, was pre-read by my good mate Ninja.


	3. First Day Continued

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 3 - First Day Continued

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He had finally done it. After many months of research, planning, and training, he and his forces had finally mastered the Oozaru transformation, no longer needing the moon to reach the war form of the Saiyan race, or even the artificial moon technique created by his mentor Bardock, and it couldn't have come soon enough. It didn't grant him the full power of the Oozaru, being only 50 to 75x his normal power instead of the 100x the moonlight-fed Oozaru yielded, but it was enough. Relying on moonlight was all well and good when fighting other races, but it didn't do much good when your enemies were Saiyan as well.

The civil war had raged across the face of Vegeta-Sei for nigh on a year now, and, while for many races a 5 year war could be considered short, for Saiyans it was exceptionally longer and bloodier than ever in recorded history. Twice now the rebel leader had been killed, and twice had another risen from the ranks to take his place. The first had been Bardock himself, which was quite a shock seeing as how, at one point, he and the king had been good friends. After him came Toma, Bardock's second, and after Toma fell, he himself had taken the reigns.

The reason for the rebellion was simple; in dealing with the tyrant Frieza, Vegeta was dooming the Saiyan race. Bardock's belief in this was only strengthened when he'd claimed to have a vision of Vegeta-Sei's destruction, and while many had rallied to his cause, at least half the populace had stuck with their king, firm in the belief he would lead the Saiyan race to glory.

Both sides had suffered tremendous losses; at best, possibly one third of the Saiyan people remained on world. One third had fled, to await a winner in the conflict, and the remaining third had all fallen in battle. He had not been without losses himself. Bardock, and the rest of his team, had all been killed, leaving him in charge, and the families of both he and his mate had all been killed at some point, save the two young kids playing quietly behind him; he had been entrusted with their care, and he would sooner destroy the entire planet, and everyone on it, than fail in this task by letting them get killed at the hands of their enemy.

"Sir, enemy incoming!" One of the scouts reported, "I.. I don't know how to explain this, but this incoming enemy is you sir. He's wearing neither the armour of the royal forces or that of the rebellion, but he's indiscriminately killing all who get in his path. If he continues in a straight line, he'll be here in maybe 5 minutes at most sir."

"Cherri," he called out, one of the female warriors standing to attention, "take the kids to the shelter, and take a small garrison with you to protect them. I'm going to meet this threat myself, and if I fail, those two are our last hope, so treat them as though they were your own."

She saluted informally - they weren't much on rank and such here, even less so since he himself had taken over - and replied, "Yes sir, I swear to you on my life and my honour that no harm shall come to them." Lowering her arm again, she added, "And, if I may say so sir, your father would be proud of the man you've become." Cherri was, for lack of a better term, an aunt to him; the would-be mate of his mate's uncle, before the war had claimed him.

He stood, flame-red cape swishing behind him, and his mate stood with him, her own cape, a brilliant forest green, settling behind her, as he turned to face his troupes and say, "The two of us shall go forth into battle once again, and stop my doppelganger before any more innocent blood is shed." Mouths opened to protest, but he cut them off, "He is here for us, and for us alone; my instincts are never wrong, and right now they scream this at me." He knew that this would be his last fight, as did they, but he would face it like a true warrior.

"I am honoured to have served with all of you," he declared, before turning to the siblings he would never see again in this world and saying, "I know the two of you will make me, and our race, proud." In a rare moment of emotion, he knelt down to hug them, placing a fatherly kiss on each of their foreheads, a gesture they didn't fight; he _was_ their father in all but name, as not only had their father been killed early in the war, when he was alive he was almost always buried in his work, leaving him to raise them. As he stood up, his mate taking her turn to make her own emotional goodbye, he knew that he would never get to have kids of his own, but he couldn't have been more proud of his own flesh and blood as he was of his siblings; what's in a name anyway?

With a nod to Cherri, the older woman took the children by their hand and led them off, her garrison trailing behind her. Even if all else died, they would live; his father's last gift to his family had been a bunker built deep in the planet, one that not even Frieza himself could destroy, even if the entire planet were reduced to rubble. When the twins were safely away, he took his mate's hand in his own, and the two strode out to face their destiny.

Minutes passed in agonising silence, before the roar of the Oozaru filled their ears as their commander and his general shifted into their war form. Death came for them this day, but they would not just lay down and accept it; in true Saiyan style, they would be dragged into the grave, kicking and screaming all the way. For a long time, neither side held the advantage, the sheer power and ferocity of the dual were-apes nullifying every advantage their foe had, but as the tide of battle began to turn, the rebel soldiers shut off the view screen; their commander would not want them to witness his death.

The end came quickly from there, the premonition coming true as both warriors died in spectacular fashion, and with their deaths, their opponent vanished in a hail of white light and blue lightning, leaving scorch marks on the ground as the only evidence he'd ever been there. There would be time for mourning the dead later though; there was never enough time to properly grieve in war. Now it was time to rebuild. The rebellion had suffered a terrible blow today, and all that saved them was their enemy's lack of this knowledge.

A new commander had to be found, for the third time, and in true rebellion fashion, their deceased commander's second stepped up for the role, a young Saiyan warrior by the name of Watmel. It would be hard, at first; it always was. Their previous commander would not be easily replaced, having lead them to victory where even the great Bardock had failed, but in his honour they would fight on until the end.

The legend of the rebel Saiyan king Kapskaen, and his warrior queen Pi, would live on until the great race died.

o-o-o

Videl currently stood in the girls' locker room, getting changed into her gym uniform. The rest of the day had continued mostly without incident, with a few exceptions. To her great annoyance, the cops didn't seem to need her today; obviously, the crooks were too scared by rumours of this new powerhouse to dare step out of line. She knew it wouldn't last forever, but it kind of irked her that _she_ had never inspired that kind of terror. She was the daughter of Hercule Satan dammit, the guy who saved the world from Cell, and as much as she hated using her father's name, she felt, as his daughter and almost equal in strength, that she deserved at least a _little_ fear.

If only she knew she was already stronger than her father would ever be...

o-o-o

One of the handful of incidents that had occurred had actually been in second period physics. It had turned out that Kat actually _was_ as tired as she looked, and mid lesson she fell fast asleep. Unfortunately, despite sitting all the way in the back, Mr. Ford, their physics teacher, had noticed her. He was just about to yell at her when, in a never before seen event, the new kid, Kaen, stood up and growled at him, his voice low so as to not wake the young redhead, but, thanks to the acoustics of the room, loud enough to carry to the front, "Don't you wake her, or so help me..."

Mr. Ford glared at him; how DARE this young upstart cause trouble on his first day! "Do you have something to say to me young man?"

Kaen's own mild glare didn't falter, "Yes, actually. If you wake her I might just have to break you in half; she needs her rest _far_ more than you need your spine." Videl shivered despite herself at his tone; it was the same he had threatened the class with, that calm, calculated tone that dripped seriousness, that showed it wasn't a threat, but a promise. She noticed Pi smirking to herself, and Gohan seemed to be fighting off a smirk of his own.

"Did you just _threaten_ me boy?" The teacher almost shouted; the only thing that stopped him from actually yelling was said threat hanging over his head, "I'll see you in detention for the rest of the year."

Kaen's glare darkened as he growled, "You wouldn't _dare_", and even the near fearless Videl had to almost check herself to see if she'd **ahem** 'lost control of certain bodily functions'; she hadn't, of course, but if she knew that even _this_ glare wasn't full power for him, despite being a lot more powerful than the one he'd acquired his seat with, she just might have. She noticed that Gohan was actually grinning to himself as if he enjoyed this exchange; just another oddity to add to the mystery of Son Gohan.

Mr. Ford wasn't made of nearly as strong stuff as Videl was, however, as he squeaked out, "Uh... No, I guess I wouldn't..." Quickly bolting out the door, he called over his shoulder, "Just finish the rest of the chapter and you can do what you want for the rest of the lesson."

The student body burst into excited whispers at this; the new guy, who had barely been on campus an hour, had managed to scare _the_ most hard-ass teacher they had, a man who could've passed for an army drill instructor without a hiccup, so thoroughly he'd actually ruined his pants. Before long, the volume of noise in the room began to creep up, but a growled "Quiet" from the angry young male silenced _everybody_. Not even Videl was game enough to talk, despite the hundred of questions almost begging to be asked, so the rest of the period passed quietly.

o-o-o

Third and fourth period English passed without incident, except for Kaen grumbling that it was too long before lunch, and Gohan and Pi agreeing with him. However, despite however many protests he had made, during lunch he only ate a medium-sized lunch, pre-packed, that he shared with Pi; for some reason, Kat had her own. Now, Videl had no way of knowing that the food Kaen and Pi ate, just like that which Gohan ate, was actually a specially designed, scientifically created 'super food', capable of equating a small banquet down to 3 sandwiches and a drink; part of their 'fitting in' regime. Kat, of course, had normal, run-of-the-mill food; she may act the part, but she couldn't eat like they did.

After eating, Kaen and Gohan had looked at each other, nodded once, and walked off together. Videl meant to follow, but couldn't find a decent excuse to leave, which left her at the table with Sharpner, Erasa, and the two new girls. Sharpner, obviously, felt like he'd died and gone to heaven, making no attempt to hide his leering. That was, of course, right up until Kat had grabbed his arm and absently tossed him over her shoulder, causing him to go flying head first into a nearby bin, where he got stuck; if the teacher on duty noticed anything, she made no sign.

Gohan and Kaen had returned just before the bell rang, and Videl's trained eyes noticed the faint bruises and cuts on their respective faces; obviously, the pair of them had spent their time fighting. However, before she could question them about it, Kaen had just slung Pi's bag, along with his own, over his shoulder, placed the other arm around her waist, and the four of them (Kat included) had walked off to class just as the bell rang without a word from anyone. All in all, it was quite frustrating.

o-o-o

Fifth and sixth period saw double history class, and even that had passed without incident; right up until the point Kaen had been asked a question. Videl didn't remember what the question itself was; she hadn't been paying the fullest attention to the teacher. Hell, Kaen himself didn't know what the question was, and neither did anyone else in the class, except the teacher; what they remembered clearly was his answer, and the chaos that followed.

A bastardly grin on his face, Kaen had just answered, "If I say 'Hercule', do I get at least partial credit?"

Kat and Pi had burst out laughing, and their laughter escalated as Gohan replied, a massive grin on his face, "If you say it enough it's an instant pass. I should warn you, however, that there's rumours going around that if you say his name 7 times, he appears out of nowhere and steals your chest hair to add to his own."

Kaen and Gohan had joined in the laughter then, and between giggles Pi had managed to get out, "That explains how he has so much of it!"

Kat gasped in, what Videl assumed was, mock-horror, the other three casing their laughter for a minute as Kat added, a playfully huffy air to her tone, "Well, he'd not getting any of _mine_." A second passed in silence, before all four broke out into laughter again.

The anger Videl had felt at their disrespect of her father melted momentarily into confusion at this statement; what the hell did Kat mean? Girls don't _have_ chest hair. When she'd voiced this thought, they only started laughing harder; obviously, it was some sort of inside joke. The only thing Videl hated worse than jokes she didn't understand were one's she was the butt of, neither of which happened often, and yet this was both.

Their laughter settled down after a few minutes, although the four of them still bore amused grins. Videl had just opened her mouth to give the lot of them a few choice words when the teacher had remarked, "Um, actually, the answer _is_ Hercule..."

That sent them into hysterics again, and they were still laughing several minutes later when the bell went, they picked up their bags, and walked off. Their receding laughter echoed down the halls of the school as the rest of the class sat there dumbfounded for a moment. Videl was the first to shake herself from her stupor, and she roughly grabbed her bag as she stalked out after them, the rest of the class following moments later.

o-o-o

And that lead her to now. The last class for the day was PE, and if she remembered rightly they were playing baseball again today. In a way, it was oddly poetic that they'd played baseball on the day Gohan started as well, and, after having played a few more sports, were back to it when three more new students arrived.

She was amazed at how _different_ Gohan seemed around people he obviously knew quite well. The fortnight passed, he'd given her the impression of a cold, introverted, loner type, the sort that believed they didn't need friends, and didn't want them either, but around those he considered friends he was quite the extrovert, talking and joking openly about things; she just wished that so many of those jokes weren't about her father. Sure, she, of all people, knew the man was far from perfect, but he _did_ beat Cell, so he deserved at least some respect.

She shook her head and growled softly to herself, rubbing her temples; every line of questioning led back to Gohan, always Gohan. Why was it he was constantly running through her mind? What was it about him that kept drawing her back? Sure, she admitted to herself, he was good looking, but he was hardly the first good-looking guy she'd ever laid eyes on. With a cry she slammed her fist into the locker in front of her, exclaiming, "Why can't I get Gohan out of my damn mind!" She suddenly became very aware of the eyes on her, and blushed crimson, coughing slightly, before regaining her composure and glaring at everyone who so much as _glanced_ at her.

The sound of animated talking drew her attention, and she saw Kat and Pi, some of the only people who _hadn't_ turned around, just finishing changing clothes. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw the large variety of scars and healing bruises over Pi's back, and a glance at Kat showed she wasn't much better off. Some of them looked very old, but there were at least a few that looked fairly recent. Rage flooded her mind as she immediately jumped to the conclusion that he beat them; she didn't bother to ask the girls, assuming that they, like most women who got beaten by abusive boyfriends/brothers/fathers, would deny it.

Hurriedly finishing getting changed, she stormed out of the change rooms, ignoring the questions thrown her way by her blonde friend, or the curious looks the new girls cast towards her. She found her target casually leaning against the wall nearby, wearing the exact same outfit as before, sans trench coat. He had adamantly _refused_ to wear the school uniform, actually going so far as to set the 'abomination' on fire in the change room; no one saw the lighter he used to start the fire though, so the jury was still out on just how he'd done it.

She ignored such minor details though, grabbing him by the shirt and slamming him against the wall; well, she tried to anyway, but moving him was like trying to drag a prime mover with your teeth. Making herself as imposing as possible, she demanded, "What the hell do you think you're doing, beating your sister and girlfriend?"

For the first time today, he looked, and was, genuinely surprised; of all the reasons to see her come stomping over, this hadn't been on his list. He had to admit, by appearances alone she did look quite fear-inducing; if he wasn't so much stronger than her it was disgusting he might have been worried. Instead, he just raised an eyebrow and said, "What the hell are you talking about girl?"

Attempting once more to shake him, and once more failing, she hissed, "I saw the scars on their backs. Some looked recent, but most of them looked quite old. What have you got to say for yourself?" Realising just what she meant, he started laughing, which didn't help her mood, as she added, "What, do you get off on it you sick freak? Got anything to say before I take you in?"

The pair of them were drawing quite a crowd, including both of the girls Kaen was supposedly beating. Calming his laughter, but still with a grin on his face for the umpteenth time today, he replied, "Yes, actually. I don't beat either of them, I _train_ them; I've been teaching the pair of them, and my twin little siblings, martial arts for years now. Yes, sometimes it gets a little rough and people get wounded; I've got a fair share of scars and old wounds myself. And I'm willing to bet you have too, correct?"

The way her face flushed with embarrassment was evidence enough for him, so he added, "Now, are we done here, or do you have any more wild accusations you'd like to throw around without any evidence to back them up?"

She let go of his shirt and turned away from him, unable to stand the condescending look on his face a moment more. Her humiliation wasn't over yet though, as he patted her on the head and said patronisingly, "Don't worry little girl, even us grown-ups make mistakes sometimes."

She whirled around, glaring knives, daggers, swords, spears, and chainsaws at the newcomer, who just smirked back at her, like he didn't fear her; he didn't, and for good reason, but she didn't know that. Ignoring her now, he just walked over to the still-laughing girls; she just realised now that they had to be laughing at _her_, and she could've sworn steam was coming out of her ears.

'I'll show you!' She vowed, 'NO ONE makes fun of me and gets away with it!' Her rage was reaching homicidal levels, and the day wasn't over yet.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Nothing much to mention here that hasn't already been said, other than a quick observation. I _am_ aware that, at times, this story may have a bit too strong a focus on the original characters I've introduced for some people. If you're in that group, then I'm sorry, but I _did_ write this story both to see how Gohan would react to having a few friends in high school who knew his secrets, _and_ to see how these original characters would settle in to life on Earth. If that's not your cup of tea then, well, can't please everyone.


	4. The End of a Long Day

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 4 - The End of a Long Day

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He sighed as he silently flew home; he was utterly exhausted. Why in Kami's name did _he_ have to be assigned to train the prince? Wasn't there someone else who would do it better? Apparently not; it seemed that not only was he the strongest in his age bracket, he was the strongest, period, that wasn't a member of either the royal family or the super-elite, and maybe even the strongest there, which made him obviously the most qualified to train the next ruler in the ways of fighting.

He sped up a little; these frequent training sessions the young prince demanded were murder on his social life, although said 'social life' was little more than spending time with his mate of 3, going on 4, standard years. They'd been friends for a lot longer than that, but it wasn't until she'd turned 3, or 15 in the standard calendar, that the two had mated for life.

He could feel her relaxation, the omni-present awareness of her bringing him comfort; not that he'd ever admit it out loud though. Tonight, however, there was... something else, niggling at the back of his senses. It was almost like a feeling that danger was on the horizon, but that couldn't be true. There had been nothing even resembling danger ever since the... accident.

He smiled to himself unconsciously; Frieza, and the rest of the Cold family, had all been wiped out in a tragic 'accident' when performing a test-fire of their prototype weapon, the 'Hyperspace Cannon'. The structural integrity of the weapon had failed mid-charge, and the freed collected hyperspace had erased Planet Frieza No.79 from existence. Absently, he wondered if anyone had worked out yet what really happened. The weapon was built to break from day one; he should know, it was his father that built it, and who was 'suddenly recalled' before the test, and thus was 'unable to make it due to unforseen circumstances'.

The niggle soon became a roar, and now he felt what could only be fear, panic, and pain from his bond mate. Feeding off the adrenaline he raced forward, blowing the front of the house clean off in his hurry, and kicking her assailant in the side of the head, sending him through the back wall. She fell to the ground, but he caught her before she hit, saying worriedly, "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

She rubbed her throat, which until a few second ago had been in the iron grip of her attacker, before she opened her eyes and looked at him, panicking for a moment and exclaiming, "Don't hurt me!" before she realised that _this_ was her mate, and throwing herself at him, sobbing and babbling.

He was confused for a moment, but it all became clear as her attacker climbed out of the rubble; the guy looked exactly the same as he did, bar the occasional scar. He growled, "Hurt _my_ mate will you?" before flinging blast after blast at the intruder, each of them dissipating harmlessly less than a centimetre from his body by a transparent blue field. His energy left him, and the salvo ended, as he collapsed to his knees and held his mate close; he had failed.

The man wasted no energy with words, simply raising both his hands and smirking, pointing one at each of them as ki began to gather into 2 red balls. With a very familiar cry, the couple knew no more.

"Twin Blaze!"

o-o-o

Videl stalked out to the playing field, noticing that Kaen and co. had already met up with Gohan, who was leaning against a nearby tree as they conversed. Noticing her arrival out of the corner of his eye, Kaen turned around partially and grinned at her, waving sarcastically. The girls giggled to themselves, Pi playfully elbowing him in the stomach, again, and Gohan... Gohan had the _gall_ to grin along with them!

She stopped abruptly, leaning against a tree herself, and casting an eye over the motley group. Out of the four of them, only the girls had bothered to change into the uniform, consisting of an orange t-shirt with black shorts (it was, after all, _Orange_ Star High). Kaen still wore his black pants and red sleeveless shirt, baring his muscled arms to the general populace.

Her gaze lingered a bit on Gohan; he certainly looked much better in what he had on now than what he'd worn on his first day. Gone were the orange pants and black vest his mother had obviously bought (she had no idea how right she was), and in their place he wore black loose pants - or were they dark blue? - and a similarly baggy long-sleeved blue shirt, with the top couple of buttons undone. She found her gaze lingering there a moment too long, as her face began to get hot, and she forcibly turned away so fast she could've sworn she heard the joints in her neck crack.

With her head as it was now, she could hear their conversation.

Kaen: "So what the hell happens now?"

Gohan: "Well, we wait for the teacher to show up obviously, but after that we're playing baseball."

Pi: "How do you play that?"

Gohan: "It's pretty simple really. There are two teams; one fields, one bats. The batting team take turns hitting the ball, thrown by the pitcher of the fielding team, and running to the bases; those white mats you can see. If the ball makes it to the base, or rather the fielding team player stationed on the base, before you do, you're out. If you're not out, you stay there until the next player hits the ball, and the ball is once again in motion. Make it back to the home plate - the one at the start - to score a run. If someone catches the ball when you bat, or gets the ball to a base before you, or gets a ball past you when you're batting 3 times, you're out. When 3 players get out, the teams switch. Whoever scores the most runs wins."

Kat: "You have a very weird definition of 'simple' Gohan."

The others started laughing, but Videl tuned them out; she didn't need _another_ reminder that he now had some good friends around. As her gaze found it's way back to Gohan, she found herself wishing that _she_ had friends that close; the only real friend she had was Erasa, and even then the two weren't always on the same wavelength, but she'd known her since first grade, and she was still her best friend to this day. Sharpner, however, was now just a drooling idiot who had once been a friend before both her father defeated Cell, and he got hormones.

Said best friend sidled up to her without her noticing, whispering in her ear, "Looks like someone's got a little crush on the new boy." She then giggled, and added, "I 'spose I should say the old new guy now huh?"

She spun around, glaring at Erasa in embarrassment as she exclaimed, "What!"

Erasa just smirked in reply, "I saw how you were looking at Gohan; come on, tell me the truth. If you can't tell your best friend, who can you tell?"

She just shook her head as she blushed faintly, "There's nothing going on Erasa." Glancing at Gohan once more, as if to re-affirm herself, she nodded once and added, "Nothing at all."

Erasa opened her mouth to continue teasing her best friend, but before she could their gym teacher arrived, a fairly old teacher by the name of Mr. Jones; he looked about 50 or so, but was still in better shape than almost every student in the school, bar Videl and Sharpner. Gathering the class, he said in a loud voice, so as to be heard by everyone, "Alright people, as you know we're playing baseball today, and you know the drill; two captains each select their team, and we go from there. Now, I notice we have some new students today. Do you three know how to play?"

The three in question nodded their heads, Pi speaking for all of them, "Yes sir, Gohan told us everything we need to know."

The teacher raised an eyebrow, "That so? Well, in that case, Mr. Son, you get to be one of the captains; after your past performance, I don't doubt you'll do well. Ms. Satan, you'll be the other. Now, both of you come up here and start pickin'."

They did as told, walking silently to the front of the class. Like a true gentleman, Gohan nodded his head to Videl, indicating she could pick first, but she just shook her head, "No, _you_ pick first."

He just shrugged, "Kaen, you're up here."

She raised an eyebrow curiously. 'So, he's gonna take his new friends onto his team huh? Well, I guess I'll get to see how good they are then.' "Sharpner."

"Pi."

They went on like this until the whole class had been chosen. Sure enough, all three new kids were on Gohan's team, and had been the first he'd chosen, despite the fact that Kat girl looked about as athletic as Erasa; that was to say, not much. Pi looked about as fit as she herself was, which tied in with Kaen's claim of training them, but Kat didn't look the part; if she knew Kat was able to control how her body looked with fluid precision, she might have changed her mind on that point. She also would have wondered why Kat didn't bother to hide the scars on her back, not realising they were badges of honour.

Turning towards Videl, Gohan said good-naturedly, "Well, since you let me pick first, you can choose who bats first."

She wasted no time in answering, "We're batting first, you're fielding."

Shrugging, he took his team out to the field, assigning positions. When he came to the new group, he said, "Alright, Pi, take right field, Kat, take left, Kaen, you're the catcher."

"What? Why?" he exclaimed angrily; well, for him it wasn't really angry, but it sounded that way to the rest of the 'normals'.

"Because this is a school, not a shooting range," Gohan replied wryly.

A grin tugged at the edges of his mouth, "Am I that easy to read?"

"Like a book honey," Pi replied, grabbing a glove and starting to walk to right field.

"Besides," Gohan added, "I'm going to be pitcher, so someone's gotta be able to catch them without hurting themselves. But if you don't feel like you can handle the job, I can always switch you and Pi around..."

Kaen just scowled at him, grabbed the glove and catchers mask, and walked off muttering, "Thin line half-breed."

Videl looked at the two half suspicious, half shocked. Again, the two traded insults without any acid in their tones. And what was it Kaen meant by 'half-breed'? She narrowed her eyes and glared at Gohan; the boy was more secret than he was flesh and blood, and dammit if that didn't piss her right off. She was yet to work out what it was that kept her thoughts coming back to him, but she'd work that out _after_ she unravelled the mystery that is Son Gohan.

She failed to notice Pi, who even in right field could see her face clearly (thanks to her enhanced vision), laughing to herself at the look on her face. So out of it was Videl that it wasn't until Gohan himself looked at her and smiled nervously that she broke her glare off, embarrassment staining her cheeks slightly at having been caught. Gohan, however, wasn't nervous because Videl had been glaring at him - Kami knew she did that enough - but because of _how_ she was glaring; it stirred up memories of something Vegeta had said, but he couldn't remember exactly what it meant yet. He shook his head to clear away such erroneous thoughts; he'd work it out later, for now they had a game to play.

To Gohan's amusement, Sharpner was the first batter on Videl's team, and the blonde jock instantly began his usual jeering as soon as he took position, "Come on Nerd Boy, let's see what you've got." For whatever reason, Sharpner had continued to use that colourful name despite the fact Gohan now looked nothing like a nerd; apparently, anyone who did well on a test was a nerd, unless that person happened to be one Videl Satan.

Kaen just raised his mask and mouthed 'Nerd boy?' to Gohan, one eyebrow raised in confusion, but Gohan just shrugged; he didn't understand either. Shrugging himself, and lowering the mask again, he got into position. With a quick wind up, Gohan threw the ball, sending it sailing straight past Sharpner and into Kaen's glove, much to the jock's shock. That shock wasn't helped as Kaen stood, removing his mask as he exclaimed, "Oh come on, what the hell was that?" The students thought for a minute that Gohan had thrown too hard, but that thought was dashed to pieces as he continued, "My little brother could've thrown harder than that. Hell, _your_ little brother could've thrown harder than that!"

Gohan just shrugged, so Kaen threw the ball back absently; Gohan caught it flawlessly. Getting into position again, Kaen grinned and nodded his head towards the blonde; he had a plan. Gohan caught on instantly, grinning back for a moment and nodding slightly once, the time spent around both Kaen and Vegeta teaching him their silent language, or much of it, very quickly; said silent language was actually a Saiyan warrior thing, that much Gohan assumed.

With another quick wind up, Gohan again sent the ball straight past Sharpner; strike 2. Again Kaen stood up, exclaiming, "That was a pathetic throw! Come on Gohan, I know you can do better than that!"

"Why don't you try it then smart-ass?" Gohan called back.

"Alright then, I will." The two switched places with a quick grin, Gohan settling into place behind Sharpner, and Kaen taking his position on the pitcher's mound. With a smirk, Kaen wound up and hurled the ball, and there was a sickening crack as bat met ball; however, that was soon met with the sound of ball hitting glove. Looking down at his bat, the blonde jock's jaw almost hit the dirt as he saw it snapped almost cleanly in half by the throw. As Kaen and Gohan switched places again, for the safety of the other students, Kaen just grinned at him, "Strike 3 Bitch Boy."

After the shock had worn off the game continued, the sides eventually switching as Videl's would-be home run was caught by Pi, in a similar athletic feat to what Gohan had pulled in the first game. Sharpner practically demanded to be pitcher, to 'teach that new kid a lesson' as he put it, so Videl settled in as catcher. The game continued normally, Pi and Kat proving to be decent players, Pi making it to second on her hit, and Kat getting them both another base. Now it was Kaen's turn at bat.

The flame-haired young man grabbed one of the metal bats, a smirk on his face. Sharpner glared maliciously at him as he took his spot at the plate (well, in _his_ mind it was malicious, but Kaen had seen worse glares after taking the last drumstick at dinner); Oh yes, he was going to make that Kaen pay! He would make him pay for making him, the Great and Magnificent Sharpner, look like an idiot!

Lowering his bat, Kaen closed his eyes, searching for a particular ki over in the 438, then working out the force and angle needed for what he planned to do; of all maths, Kaen excelled at vectors. Satisfied with his work, he opened his eyes again and raised his bat to the fore, beginning to coat the bat with ki; to Videl's trained eyes, as well as the eyes of his friends, the bat could be seen glowing a faint red, but Videl passed it off as her eyes playing tricks on her.

Smirking, Sharpner wound up and lobbed a fastball directly at Kaen's head, figuring he'd duck before it hit; no such luck. As far as Kaen was concerned, the ball might as well have been going in slow motion, and at the last possible second Kaen took a step back and swung, a resonating 'clang' signalling he'd made contact, and the ball went flying, zooming so close over Sharpner's head it left faint burn marks on his hat, and punching a hole straight through the old scoreboard as it left the school, and then the city.

o-o-o

Over in the 438, near the home where Kaen and Pi lived, Lime was currently trying to talk some sense into her twin brother, "Come on Oran, this isn't a good idea. Big brother will know..."

"How will he find out?" Oran shot back, "Are you gonna tell him? He's gonna be at school for a while longer yet, so we'll be all set up by the time they get back. Besides, we can always blame Goten and Trunks." He finished with a grin.

Lime was just about to reply when she noticed something small and round heading their way, and was just about to say something when Oran turned around, to see what she'd been staring at, and got cracked right on the forehead by it. He fell on his butt, holding his head and whining, "Ow ow ow," before looking to see what hit him.

It was a baseball, still glowing a faint red, and reeking of their brother's ki so strongly they could practically smell it. The twins looked into each other's eyes, and Lime remarked sagely, and well beyond her years, "Big brother knows _everything_." With a slow nod they got back to work on the exercises he'd set them earlier that morning, planned prank all but forgotten.

o-o-o

"Damn, I missed!"

Sharpner stared at Kaen in shock; what did he mean miss! That ball could've taken his head clean off! Turning to the teacher, Kaen asked, "So, do I still have to run the bases or not?"

Shaking himself from his stupor, Mr. Jones just replied numbly, "Um... no, no you don't." Recovering slightly, he added in his normal voice, "Well son, that was almost as good as Mr. Son's first attempt; I didn't even _see_ where that ball went!"

"Dryd'c palyica E tacdnuoat ed..." Gohan replied as he moved up to take his turn.

With a grin and a nod Kaen tossed him his bat, moving off to sit with Pi and Kat, who'd just returned to their seat; Gohan dropped the bat moments later. Not only was that bat ruined, as the finger grooves and massive dent (from the ball) attested to, but it almost burnt his hands to touch. So weakened was the bat that when he dropped it, the handle actually cleanly broke off.

Recovering slightly, as he noticed that 'Nerd Boy' was now up to bat, Sharpner thought he'd try again, seeing if he could bean Gohan in the head, but, like Kaen before him, Gohan hit the ball with a mighty wallop, causing another burn mark over Sharpner's hat, creating another hole in the scoreboard, and hitting another small child on the head; this time, his own brother Goten, over near their home in the 439, who, along with Trunks, had been about to set up a prank Gohan would later have fallen victim to.

Gohan just growled, "Damn, we both missed!"

The game resumed normally from there, Gohan's team winning by a large margin, but Videl couldn't help but think to herself, 'What the hell _are_ these people!'

o-o-o

Videl stormed off in search of Gohan and co. The bell had rung, school was now over, and she was determined to get some answers from him! Kat and Pi had changed quickly, and the four had left before Videl could see where they went; she just hoped she was going the right way.

Her prayers were answered as she heard Kaen say, "Hey Gohan, need a lift?

Exiting the building, she saw her quarry shake his head, "Nah, I've gotta meet up with Vegeta 'safternoon."

"Your loss," Kaen replied with a shrug, as both he and Kat threw a capsule absently. Videl was just about to round on Gohan, who now had no excuse for leaving with them, when she saw what came out of those capsules.

A pair of black racing bikes, highly customised, with intricate decals; Kaen's had a bird of fire, Kat's a black panther on a dark grey background. Glaring at them, and not noticing Gohan slink off, she barked, "Are those things street legal?"

Kaen just smirked on her, waiting until he'd capsulated he and Pi's bags, and decapsulated their helmets, that he replied, "Probably not. What are you gonna do about it?"

Her glare darkened, but if he noticed he made no sign, "I'm gonna confiscate them and take you in, that's what!"

"That a fact?" He asked arrogantly. Climbing aboard the bike, Pi getting on behind him, he put his helmet on, looked to his left to see Kat on hers, before turning back to her, smirking, and saying, "Then catch me if you can!" as he flipped the visor down, gunned the bike into life, and sped off, Kat following close behind.

With a curse, both at having to chase him, and that, as she noticed now, Gohan had fled, she decapsulated her copter, climbing in and chasing after them. She had to admit, from the safety of her copter at least, that the pair of them were good drivers, weaving in and around traffic at easily 200 kph; good drivers, but breaking the law. She chased them for a good half hour through the city, as they weaved this way and that way; either they were trying to lose her, or they were merely wasting time to piss her off. But she was having none of it!

When a clear patch came up she lowered her copter so she was flying along side them, calling out, "Give up! You can't get away from me!"

Kaen just turned to look at her, and she would have put money on the fact he was smirking inside that helmet as he replied, "We've been doing a good job so far!"

Growling to herself, she barked, "Stop playing games with me!"

Again, she would've sworn he was smirking as he said, "If you insist girl. I guess this is goodbye then." Saying this, he flicked a switch on the bike hidden from her view, and what she could only describe as turbo thrusters activated. Kat followed suit a second later, and Videl could only watch as the bikes easily reached 300 and kept going. By the time they'd left her sight, and the city with it, they had to be going 400.

With a frustrated sigh, Videl disengaged her chase, not that she could've chased them anymore anyway, and headed for home. It had been a long day, a _long_ _trying_ day, and she now had more questions about the enigmatic Son Gohan than ever before. And that Kaen... there were no words she knew to describe the depth of hate she felt for him. He had constantly made a fool out of her all day, always showing her up at everything she could do. But she'd get him back. She didn't care how long it took to accomplish, Kaen Avarrdo was going down!

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Dryd'c palyica E tacdnuoat ed... That's because I destroyed it...

And so day one draws to a close. I promise that the rest of the days won't be this long, it's just that this one was a monumental train-wreck from start to finish.

I'd now like to take a moment both to thank those people who've reviewed, and those people who've simply just read, this story thusfar, as well as to respond to a couple of them:

not-me-i-am, you've brought up a very interesting point: it's not possible to please everything. I do mean this in the nicest possibe way though. I mean, thus far I've had one reviewer saying they liked me using the different language, and one that didn't, so I'll explain why I've done what I've done. As is in the story, the conversations are as an outsider like Videl would hear, because, while I try to stick to third person, the early chapters are more-or-less from her point of view. Also, I have no intention of holding full conversations coded, not just because it's annoying to read, but it's annoying to write to, so by the time they're full conversations, it's in bold font instead.

And Trahmada, don't be so quick to doubt the classifications of this story :) Keep in mind that, up to this point, you've only seen the happenings of a single school day. I promise you you'll see more romance stuff as the plot develops.


	5. Dawn of a New Day

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 5 - Dawn of a New Day

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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The first rays of sunlight cut through the surrounding fog like a knife, but, were the sun sentient, it would have probably wished it hadn't. Bodies, and parts of bodies, lay strewn as far as the eye could see in every direction; granted, with the lingering fog, one couldn't see _that_ far, but even in such a small space, there were close to at least three dozen dead warriors.

In the centre of this carnage, one warrior stood still, covered almost head to toe in blood, yet he himself had no wounds; he was painted in the blood of his enemies. The resistance in this plane had been greater than he'd anticipated, but no matter, he had slaughtered them all with power to spare. Even so, the battle had been fairly even right up until one point; the point where his double died.

He took flight, heading for the nearest body of water to clean himself off. They had severely outnumbered him, but he had managed to hold them at bay with raw power alone. There was little or no skill in his style; after all, in his world he'd never had any formal training, it was all might-makes-right. It too didn't matter, he had more than enough power to make up for any lack of training, as the nights battle had proved.

The turning point had been when he'd killed this world's version of him; he had gained the strength of his dimensional twin. It was something he'd discovered by accident a while ago. After all, it's not like he went _looking_ for alternate dimensions; it was _supposed_ to be a time machine. He landed near a large lake, and carefully set the Device, that he wore on his left arm, onto the ground, before diving headfirst into the water.

He didn't gain _all_ of his alternate's power when he killed them, at most it was about 25; he didn't know why this was the amount of power he gained, but, then again, he didn't know why he gained their power _period_, but wasn't going to fight a good thing. He briefly wondered what happened to the rest of that power, but discarded the thought without too much deliberation; like so much else, it didn't matter. He pulled himself out of the lake, drying himself with his ki, before reattaching the Device to his arm; nothing mattered any more, nothing but getting strong enough to break the boundary between life and death. Nothing had mattered ever since She was torn from him.

A memory of her passed through his mind's eye, but it wasn't _his_ memory, and not _his_ version of her. One side effect of the power gain - or was it the Device? He didn't know - was that he actually gained the memories of his double, or some of at least; in this particular dimension, it's version of Her had been the one to train it's version of Him, instead of He Her. There were downsides to gaining their memories, like taunting images of a peaceful life by Her side, but there were definite upsides as well. He gained their techniques.

Any and all holes in his style were slowly being filled up by the memories of those he defeated: one Him had more ki techniques than he had kills under his belt, which was saying a lot; another Him had a fairly brutal fighting style, one which had little to no defensive capabilities, but, if you had the power to throw around, was extremely efficient in the short term; a third Him could actually become Oozaru without moonlight, although he was yet to pull that off. His mind may have known how to do many things, but his body was yet to catch up.

He cast an eye over himself, finding himself now free of blood, but his armour and bodysuit had seen better days. He briefly considered flying over to his double's house and taking one of his, but again discarded the idea; the outfit he had on was still good enough to fight in, and that was all that mattered. He tried to ignore the fact that this particular outfit had been the last thing She gave him.

Shaking his head free of erroneous thoughts, he pressed a few buttons on the Device, and disappeared in a flash of white light and a hail of blue lightning; he had work to do. There were many more dimensions out there, and doubles just waiting to provide him with more power. Above all else, he needed more power, if he was ever to bring Her back to life.

'I'll bring you back. On my life, I vow I will reunite you and I, Pi, my mate...'

o-o-o

The sun rose above the horizon, casting it's warming yellow glow into the window of one Son Gohan, demi-Saiyan, warrior, and all-around genius. A new day had dawned, one that, under normal circumstances, would have offered great things, were it not for one small fact: it was Tuesday, and thus, he had school. The shrill beeping of his alarm rang loudly through the otherwise silent house, before, with a sickening crack, it was silenced.

Gohan grinned to himself, still sleepy, but awake; there was something remarkably satisfying about reducing his alarm clock to fragments of it's former glory. Sure, he knew that in a few hours it'd be fine again - a little quirk the device Bulma created meant that, although it _could_ be destroyed, it would always repair itself - but for now, all was well. Right up until the point one Son Goten came barrelling into the room and landed on his back.

"Wakie wakie niichan," the young boy chirped, way too energetic for this time of morning, "Time to get up, else you'll be late for school."

"Wouldn't that be a shame..." Gohan mumbled sarcastically to himself, picking his little brother up by the back of his gi, and literally throwing him across the room and out the still-open door; Gohan was _not_ a morning person. The 7-year-old didn't seem to mind the treatment though; judging by the excited whoop he made as he went flying through the air, he actually had fun being tossed out of his brother's room.

He dressed fairly quickly, throwing on the same dark blue slacks as yesterday, this time with a short sleeved blue T-shirt, with the words "Nobody's perfect. I am nobody. Therefore, I am perfect." on it; he honestly didn't have _that_ big of an ego to consider himself perfect, but after training with Vegeta these past 7 years, he couldn't help having _some_ ego. He didn't bother brushing his hair; it never worked. Instead, he just ambled in a half-daze down to breakfast, resolving to get some coffee in amongst the vast amount of breakfast his mother had no doubt prepared.

Sure enough, when he arrived in the kitchen/dining room, he was greeted with a table loaded with assorted foods, all of it smelling thrice as good as it looked, and it looked _good_. And, as usual, Goten was already sitting at the table, visibly trembling with the effort to resist diving headfirst into the food; the slight dent in his hair proved he'd already slipped once today on the 'nobody eats until everyone's there' rule his mother enforced.

Speaking of which; "Good morning Gohan," Chichi greeted, not turning away from the stove, where the last of breakfast remained cooking, "Looking forward to another day of school?"

He made a face at her back, but replied warmly enough, "'Morning kaasan," yawning as he did so.

"Are you training with Vegeta again today?" She asked, trying to keep the distaste out of her voice. After all these years, she still didn't like Vegeta, and still didn't like the thought of her baby fighting, but she'd learnt to accept both of them. She had lorded over Gohan for too long, trying to make him into what she wanted him to be, never once giving a thought to what he wanted; if nothing else, Goku had informed her of that during one of his sporadic visits from Otherworld.

Never-the-less, while she accepted the fact Gohan felt he had to train, she was determined not to let him do nothing but fight the way Vegeta did; they had come to a compromise: Gohan could train, so long as he spent equal parts studying. So long as he still studied, what he did with the rest of his time was up to him.

"Not today," Gohan replied, taking his seat at the table, "Today I'm gonna probably head over to the 438 and spar with Kaen."

She frowned, thankful she had her back to him; she didn't know what to think about that. On the one hand, she was glad her son actually had a friend his age that could actually relate to him, but on the other, that Kaen was clearly a hooligan, the type she'd been trying to keep her sons away from for years; he was like a younger Vegeta, only less arrogant and more sarcastic. Then again, unlike Vegeta he _had_ done some good in his life, even if it _was_ for selfish reasons...

"Why do you train with him anyway niichan?" Goten asked, cocking his head to one side in the cute sort of way only a small child can do, "He's not even as strong as Mr. Vegeta, so he can't be much of a challenge."

Gohan just chuckled to himself a little. Yes, it was true that Kaen wasn't as strong as Vegeta, or at least had never _shown_ he was, but he was also hiding a lot of his strength; Gohan could sense that much, but not _how_ much he was hiding. That was one of the reasons he sparred with the time traveller, to see if he'd drop his guard, but there were other reasons. "Strength isn't everything Goten. A stronger opponent can easily lose to someone who's more skilled, and in technique alone, Kaen outclasses me. If he ever _did_ get as strong as me," 'If he's not already...' "Then he'd have the advantage."

All attempt at conversation ceased as Chichi set down the last of the food, indicating they could now start, and the pair of demi-Saiyans tore through the meal as though it were their last, but she just took it in stride; they always ate like that. For several minutes there was silence, bar the usual sounds of fast-paced eating, until, despite the fact she'd started first, and they'd had at least twenty times as much food, the boys finished together, leaning back in their chairs and holding their stomachs, a grin on both of their faces.

Grabbing his bag, and giving his mother a quick kiss on the cheek, Gohan raced out the door, calling out over his shoulder, "Bye guys," before activating his Saiyaman watch and taking to the sky. Despite what he'd told Bulma, he didn't think the costume was _that_ great; sure, it hid who he was perfectly, but he looked like an idiot. He didn't want to hurt his godmother's feelings though, so he accepted it for what it was. Besides, the more it was something he'd never normally wear, the harder it was to link Gohan to Saiyaman.

The glass and concrete jungle of Satan City came into view soon enough; for once, Gohan was early. He knew that would change soon enough though, as he set off on an early morning patrol.

o-o-o

Elsewhere that morning, another shrill beeping alarm awoke a second sleeping teen, the dark-haired beauty taking a moment to look at the time before flinging the offending object across the room, which hit the wall before crashing to the ground to join the pile of broken clocks that kept building every day. Every morning she destroyed an alarm clock, and every afternoon there was another one waiting destruction the next day; not that it really mattered, her father was more than rich enough to keep buying her clocks.

With a scowl firmly on her face, one Videl Satan climbed out of bed and began her daily rituals to get herself ready; the day hadn't started, and already she had a headache. She wore the exact same outfit she always did, the black spandex shorts, large white T-shirt, and pink undershirt that had become her trademark; not forgetting the yellow clip-on boots and black fighting gloves of course. And, as usual, she fixed her hair up into the standard pigtails; she couldn't remember why she wore them, just that it was important to her on some level, and that she'd done it for as long as she could remember.

As she stalked off to the dining room to get some breakfast in her, she tried to think about why she woke up angry and headachy; it wasn't that her waking up angry was a rare occurrence - in fact it happened most every day for one reason or another - but she was never angry for no reason, and her sleep-addled brain had trouble working out why she was now.

Then it hit her: that arrogant bastard new guy Kaen. He'd spent the entire day getting under her skin, then had the audacity to break the law right in front of her, and got away at that. She smirked to herself; he couldn't hide forever. He went to her school now, and was in her class, so she'd get him, assuming he had the balls to show up. No one messed with Videl Satan.

Sitting down at the table, and accepting the food one of the many servants brought, she wasn't surprised not to see her father there. Truth be told it was a relief, because this way she wouldn't have to sit through one of his many speeches: his 'I beat Cell' speech, his 'I don't want you helping the no-good police' speech, or, her personal 'favourite', his 'no boys' speech.

She snorted inaudibly to herself, 'Yeah right, like any guy's honestly gonna want to go out with me, a tomboy who could break them in half. The only guys who even try are all just trying to get closer to dad, and I'd rather die than even consider going out with a prick like that.'

Even though she knew what the answer would be, she felt the need to ask, turning to one of the maids and saying, "Do you know where my father is?"

"I believe Master Hercule had to go on an urgent business trip. I think he said he'd be gone for a couple of weeks at least," the maid replied, pausing a moment to see if Videl wanted anything else before continuing about her own business.

"Business trip my ass..." she grumbled to herself; she still had a headache. Looked like it was going to be one of those days. Rubbing her temples, she quickly finished her breakfast before grabbing her bag, her keys, and her capsules, and heading out to face the new day head on.

She was almost at school, flying her copter as usual, when she spotted two black streaks heading in the direction of said school. She estimated they had to be going at least 180 kph, and they were coming from the direction Kaen and co. had disappeared to the day before. She smirked to herself again; so, he _was_ ballsy enough to show up. She was just about to set down on the roof, having watched the streaks screech to a half in front of the school, revealing 2 bikes and 3 people, when her communicator watch went off.

Growling, Videl pressed the button to open the comm. link, "What is it chief?"

The chief looked visibly shaken at the tone of her voice, but he carried on regardless, "Videl, you've got to come quickly! A gang of highly-armed men have taken control of Satan National Bank, and we..."

"I'll be there soon," Videl cut him off, ending the connection before he could reply, veering off in the direction of the bank moments later. Her headache was still there.

o-o-o

Videl growled to herself as she stormed down the halls of Orange Star High, and if she had a tail, it would have been lashing around behind her; there was a proverbial storm cloud hanging over her head. That... that... _bastard_ Saiyaman had showed up at the bank and saved the day, _again_! And he'd had the nerve to do so while she was there too; the crooks had been standing one minute, training guns on her, and the next they were all unconscious, their guns piled into a heap of now-melting steel.

Don't misunderstand her though, she _was_ happy to still be alive; she had doubts whether she could've gotten out of the way in time. But in any case, that loony in the ridiculous outfit had shown her up once more. He had taken down every last one of them, and if she had've blinked, she would've missed it. And to top it all off, he'd disappeared soon after, taking a moment to smirk at her before simply vanishing into thin air, two fingers held to his forehead.

'Oh well,' she thought to herself, a smirk spreading across her face, 'Saiyaman may have gotten away again, but I've got Kaen right where I want him.'

Arriving at the classroom, she kicked the door in, in no mood for niceties; she was late, sure, but it was only history, and their history teacher was very easy going. Plus, her head was now throbbing painfully, killing any and all manners she might have used. Storming into the room, she pointed angrily up at the flame-haired guy in the last row, growling, "You! You've got some nerve to show up here after that stunt you pulled yesterday!"

If he was worried, he didn't show it, instead casually taking two cards out of his wallet, and a folded up sheet of paper from his coat, as she marched up to him. She was about to launch into another tirade when he casually tossed the three things onto the table in front of her, a smirk on his face.

She picked the three of them up, taking a moment to look them over, if only to find out what he found so amusing. The first was simple enough, it was a drivers licence, a scowling Kaen glaring at the camera. What it did show though was that not only was he licensed to drive vehicles that could reach in excess of 200 kph, but that his bike was, in fact, street legal. That didn't get him off the hook however, just because he was allowed to ride it at speed in excess of 200 didn't mean he could ignore speed limits.

The second card, however, shocked her anger right out of her; it couldn't be right! Taking a look at the paper, her heart sank when she saw it confirm what the card declared. Looking up at him over said paper, she muttered, "It can't be right... It's not possible..."

His smirk broadened as he replied, "Oh there's nothing wrong there, Miss Satan. As those credentials prove, I am officially an ambassador of the fledgling nation of New Saiya, granting my family and I complete diplomatic immunity from prosecution. Those papers were signed by the ruling body of the nation himself."

Sure enough, looking over her shoulder Gohan could see Vegeta's signature on the bottom in perfect Saiya-Go. He vaguely wondered why he'd give such a title to Kaen, because the two hardly saw eye to eye on most things; Kaen had a deep-seated hate for Vegeta's father. 'Ah well,' he thought to himself, 'I'll ask him next time I see him.'

Still smirking, Kaen casually took both cards, and the authorised document, from Videl's stunned hands and put them away; she just stood there gaping like a fish. He just remarked, "In other words Miss Satan, you can't touch me. Now, I suggest you close your mouth and sit down before I file charges against you for harassment."

Still stunned, she had the sense to actually do as she was told for once, slumping down into her seat and resting her head in her hands. She had been so close, _so close_, to getting back at him she could almost _taste_ it, and at the last minute, it was ripped away from her, her revenge torn to shreds before her very eyes. She was so stunned by this turn of events she almost missed the matching smirk on Gohan's face. Key word, _almost_; she just glared darkly at him.

Now, Gohan wasn't smirking because he felt she deserved the treatment per say - he actually planned on getting Kaen to back off a little - but he _did_ find her expression very amusing. He would have liked to consider Videl a friend - and Kami... err... Dende knew how much he needed more friends his age - but there was one thing stopping him; her overbearing pride, most likely inherited from her father, which wouldn't let her open up. He truly believed that under the mass of sharp thorns she showed everyone else that there was a rose, but it was a matter of cutting down the thorns, and if he had to help Kaen chip away at her pride a bit to get her to open up, then so be it.

All the while Videl's head throbbed painfully, worse than before. It was definitely one of those days...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

If you don't know this, you've obviously not read much fan fiction, but in any case, niichan is an affectionate way of saying oniisan, which means big brother, and kaasan is an informal version of okaasan (mother).

At this point in time, there's probably enough info from the opening scenes thus far to determine which movie inspired this series. I'll be interested to see if anyone can work it out, so if you do, let me know somehow.


	6. One of Those Days

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 6 - One of Those Days

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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His footsteps rang loudly through the otherwise quiet streets, the sound echoing off the stone walls of the neighbouring houses, and the echoes echoing again, until it was impossible to work out where the sounds originated from, but this fact was hardly his top concern. They were coming, and he had to get back to her. He had to get her to safety. She was his responsibility, and he would _not_ let anything happen to her.

They'd been on the run for just over four standard years now, ever since he turned three, or fifteen in the standard calendar. The king himself had warned him that Frieza wanted him dead. He had grown too strong too quickly for the dictators liking, and as such, he was considered 'a threat to the safety of the Cold Empire'. In other words, Frieza was worried he'd grow strong enough to kill him. King Vegeta had told him that, for his own safety, and for the greater good of the Saiyan race, he had to disappear; Frieza had, after all, ordered the king to have him killed. However, if he 'fled' before the orders could be carried out...

Thus, he'd been forced to leave behind all he knew and cared about; all but one anyway. Escaping Frieza's wrath meant he could no longer count on support from Vegeta-sei, nor could he ever return home, but still she went with him. He'd gone to say goodbye before he left, and she'd demanded he let her come with him. He had tried to talk her out of coming, but she was adamant, saying that even if he left her behind she'd find some way to track him down. She'd said they were soulmates after all, and nothing else mattered as long as they had each other.

Looking back on it, he was glad she had come with him; Kami only knew what might have happened to him without her support. She'd kept him sane, kept him from going overboard, kept him from destroying anyone and everyone that got in his way. She had given her heart and soul to him, and sacrificed everything just to be with him, and he, in return, did the same for her; how could he do any less? She was his world, and he would sooner die than let anything happen to her.

He quickly ducked into the building they had been staying in, closing and locking the door behind him, before heading up to their room and shaking her awake. She blinked rapidly, taking a few seconds to wake up, before asking, "What's going on?"

He placed a hand over her mouth, and a finger to his lips, indicating quiet was needed, as he whispered back, "We've got to get out of here. There's an extermination squad on the way, and it won't take them long to find us."

Her eyes widened a fraction in shock, and her eyes shone with a touch of fear, but she voiced neither of these emotions. Instead, she nodded once, and the two began rounding up their meagre possessions; there was no need for her to get dressed, they'd long since taken to sleeping fully clothed in case a quick getaway was needed. Mere minutes after he'd arrived back, the front door of the rental house, more of a bungalow, exploded inwards in a shower of wooden splinters by the force of a simple ki blast; the extermination squad had arrived. Too bad for them though, the couple had already fled through the hidden basement tunnel they'd made for just such an emergency.

They were almost at their ship, hidden in an open roofed cave, when the ship was destroyed by another blast in a hail of twisted metal. Gritting their teeth, they prepared themselves to fight to the death; if this was to be their last day alive, they would go down like warriors. They didn't expect what came out of the smoke however; surely Frieza didn't have cloning technology? Never-the-less, they threw themselves at their foe, and were slapped down like children; he defeated them so easily they might as well have stood still.

As the enemy charged the killing blast, he embraced his mate one last time, tucking a stand of hair behind her ear. A smile on his face, he whispered, "Well my love, it looks like we die together," before kissing her.

Breaking the kiss for a moment, she whispered back, "That just means we have an eternity to spend with each other, from now until the end of time."

His smile returned as he replied, "Well Pi, I can't think of a better way to spend an eon or two." And with one final kiss, the young couple were wiped from the living world.

o-o-o

As the day carried on, Videl had to honestly wonder just why she still had a headache. After that incident in first period, where she'd discovered Kaen was beyond reach of her rage, the day had been almost painfully free of incident. History had shown no repeat of yesterday's Hercule-bashing (although this could be attested to by the fact that none of the new kids were asked any questions) and English, like the day before, was equally quiet.

The most exciting thing that had happened had been in third period Physics. Mr. Ford had walked in, set down his gear, and opened his mouth to begin his lesson, when he'd seen Kaen in the back of the room. Now, Kaen wasn't glaring at the middle-aged man, far from it; if anything, he looked like he was about to fall asleep. Never the less, the teacher had shrieked like a woman, and gone running from the room like the devil himself was chasing him.

Needless to say, this had confused the hell out of everyone; a quick look back at the flame-haired young man showed he was just as confused as everyone else as to the teacher's reaction. The class had broken into excited whispers; with no teacher to supervise them, chaos quickly ensued; this was abruptly quelled when said flame-haired young man had growled, "Shut up brats!" Another quick look at him showed he was holding his head in his hands; it looked like he had a headache too.

After several minutes of uncomfortable silence, a silence which no one was game enough to break, the principal, Mr. Field, walked into the classroom, asking everyone, "What happened to Mr. Ford?"

Chaos reigned again as everyone tried to answer at once. 'Well, almost everyone,' Videl thought to herself, noticing that Gohan and the new kids - she really had to find something else to call them - made no effort to do anything of the sort. If anything, they were doing the work the class was supposed to be doing.

Raising his hands, Mr. Field said, "Alright, enough, one at a time. Ms. Satan, can you tell me what happened here?"

Standing up to answer him, she replied, "Honestly, I'm not sure sir. Mr. Ford took one look at Kaen," she paused, indicating the bored-looking man behind her, "and fled as if his life depended on it."

Taking a moment to look at Kaen himself, and obviously not seeing any problem, he said to the class, "Alright, I'm going to look into this. For now, I want you kids to work on the prescribed questions from the textbook." Saying this, he left the classroom, intent on finding the wayward teacher.

With a shrug, the group had returned to their work. From the whispers she could hear from Pi and Kat (and they were very quiet whispers, so quiet she would have sworn even they had trouble hearing them) and from the quick glances she stole of Gohan's work, the four of them were actually quite a way in front, having already moved on to _next_ week's work. This surprised her a bit. Sure, Gohan was quite obviously a genius, no questions there, but the other three were hardly like him; they obviously weren't as smart as him if they didn't do as well as him on the admissions exam.

Now, Videl had no way of knowing that Kaen, Pi, and Kat, had all put about as much effort into completing said admissions exam as Kaen did in to brushing his hair of a morning; that is to say, little to no effort at all. Besides which, the three of them, being travellers through time and space, hardly had a working knowledge of Earth's history and geography; if they wanted, they could have spent time reading books to get said knowledge (after all, to a Saiyan, 500 years of history is a drop in the ocean) but the three of them hardly cared. The only reason they did history at all was because there were no better classes to fill that gap, and this way they could spend the class with Gohan.

Mr. Field had returned about fifteen minutes before the end of class, calling Kaen outside for a minute to speak with him. With a shrug, he'd followed the plump principal outside, closing the classroom door behind him, and had walked back in several minutes later, a satisfied look on his face. Mr. Field had then addressed the class, "Now, I've had a bit of a chat with Mr. Ford, and it seems that he refuses to teach this class anymore as long as Mr. Avarrdo is in it. We'll make sure to have a substitute teacher for tomorrow's class, but for the rest of today's class, just continue working quietly." And with that, he was gone.

With the class devoid of authority figures again, Kat had turned to her brother and giggled, "Wow, you must've really put the fear into him."

"So what'd he want to talk to you about anyway?" Gohan asked.

"Just a slap on the wrist and a 'don't go around scaring teachers'," he replied, a grin on his face, "Turns out B warned them that pissing me off might be bad for business, not to mention their health. Remind me to thank her the next time we see her." He directed this last comment at his girlfriend.

Videl's head throbbed painfully again; her headache had chosen this moment to reaffirm its presence. So, the four of them knew some woman named 'B' that had the authority to give the school a warning, and enough social, political, or other clout to be listened to. Yet another question to add to the ever-increasing pile, and not nearly enough answers to go with them.

o-o-o

Fourth period maths had been painfully boring - Mr. Wick seemed to realise that neither Gohan or Kaen needed any of his help, so he didn't bother them all lesson - and to make matters worse, it was apparently a slow crime day. On an ordinary day, Videl would've been called out of class to help at least once before lunchtime, but not today. Today Videl Satan, headache and all, was left to suffer through three hours of boring classes.

It was now lunch, and the two blondes that called themselves her friends were elsewhere, having made themselves scarce after eating; Erasa had some sort of meeting with her gossip group, and Sharpner decided to spend the day with his jock buddies. Following the routine established the day before, Gohan and Kaen had left soon after eating, and Videl was just about to follow them (after all, without Erasa there she had no reason to stay) when Pi placed a hand on her shoulder, saying, "Can we talk?"

Videl's headache throbbed, and she shot back acidly, "Why? So you can badmouth my father some more? Or would you rather make me look like an idiot again?" The older girl winced a bit, as if her words stung, and as the pain in her head lessened she added, "Sorry, my head's killing me, but that was uncalled for..."

"No, you're right," Pi interrupted, "We were out of line yesterday. I'm the one who should be apologising."

"Kaen should be the one apologizing," Videl corrected.

Kat giggled, "You'll have more luck bleeding a stone then getting Kaen to apologize."

"In any case," Pi continued, "We're sorry about what happened. Kaen has a habit of taking things too far..."

"What's his problem anyway?" Videl asked somewhat rhetorically.

The older girl just smiled cryptically, "I could spend an entire day listing problems he'll deny exist, but the one you're concerned with is his nasty habit of punishing children for the sins of their father..."

"But what's his problem with my father?" She interrupted.

Pi just smiled cryptically again, "You'll have to ask him that. When you do, know that I agree with him completely; I'm just not one to hold it against you."

A look of mild annoyance on her face, Videl remarked, "You're saying a lot without saying anything, you know that right?"

Keeping the pigtailed girl off balance, Kat changed the subject by saying, "I know we kinda got off on the wrong foot yesterday, but we really would like to be friends. Get to know the girl behind the name, that sort of thing."

"What's in it for you?" Videl asked, "Why do you want to 'get to know me'?"

A look on amusement dancing across her features, Kat replied, "Are you always this suspicious of people?" She and Pi had positioned themselves such that Videl couldn't possibly watch both of them at the same time, having to look back and forth to whoever was talking, and leaving the other free to examine Videl's expressions and attitude.

"What makes you think we want anything more than a friend?" Pi added, causing the younger girl to look at her again. Inwardly, she was amused by Videl's suspicions of everyone and everything, but she didn't allow this to show.

"If fame has taught me nothing else, it's that people don't do anything for nothing," the girl replied bitterly.

Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, Kat (who was only just tall enough for such a gesture) chirped, "Well 'Del, you've just met two people that do. So, whaddya say? Wanna be friends?"

Casting a wary eye at the girl, Videl asked, "Are you really Kaen's sister?"

The young redhead just giggled, "I'm adopted."

"That explains _so_ much..." Videl replied, taking a moment to gather her thoughts. 'Well, if I become friends with these two, I can always use them to find some way to bring Kaen down... yes, I like that thought.' She failed to realise that, in her thinking, she would be acting just like she suspected they were. Shaking her head, Videl replied to the previous question, "Ah what the hell. Kami knows I could use more friends, and you two don't seem half bad. One condition though: I don't have to so much as pretend to like Kaen."

Pi just held out her hand and giggled, "Deal." The pigtailed girl shook her hand, again shocked by the grip the older girl had, and the three of them spent the rest of lunchtime getting to know each other a bit better, although she never really had any of her important questions answered.

o-o-o

PE, and after the day before, where Kaen and Gohan had single-handedly broken Kami-knew how many records and laws of physics, Videl was almost dreading it, her head pounding away like a kettle drum. For a while she thought her fears were misplaced, as, when the sport of the day was announced to be basketball, Kaen had declared he would take no part in 'such weakling sports'. Then Sharpner, being the idiot he was, spoke up.

See, somewhere in that steroid-abused brain of his, he'd gotten it into his head that, athletically, he was second only to Videl, a fact that, prior to Gohan's entry into the school, was just that, fact. Logically, that meant that, after Videl, Sharpner was the best the school had at almost every sport. What Sharpner failed to realise, however, was that his days one rung from the top of the ladder were well and truly over.

Somehow, he figured that Kaen's performance in baseball the other day was an isolated incident; that he'd trained exclusively to be that good at that sport, and thus couldn't do other sports anywhere near as well, if at all. This was against the fact that showed he seemed Gohan's equal in many things, and that Gohan had shown himself to be a near master at anything he tried. And thus he decided to call Kaen out, saying, "I bet you just don't want to play because you can't do it; you're afraid of making an idiot out of yourself."

Kaen just glared at the blonde jock, growling, "I fear nothing Bitch Boy, and I can do anything you can do, only three times better at least."

"Care to put your money where your mouth is?" Sharpner taunted back.

"Money, eh?" Kaen grinned, reaching into his wallet, "Alright Bitch Boy, 5000 zenni says I beat you at any contest of your choosing." Saying this, he drew said 5000 from his wallet, much to the shock of those around him. "Well, are you game enough to back up that big mouth of yours?"

"I'm game alright. I just don't have 5000 zenni on me..." the blonde jock replied, trailing off towards the end.

A grin on his face, Kaen said, "Tell you what then, if my wager's a little too high for your tastes, let's try this one. If you win, you get this money right here. If I win, you die your hair neon green, and keep it that way for a month." The jocks mouth dropped, and Kaen added, "If you're confident you're gonna win, then it shouldn't matter what your counter wager is, should it?" Kaen personally didn't give a damn about winning anything, but he was having fun breaking the blonde's ego.

Steeling himself, Sharpner shot back, "You're on! Just don't come crying when I whoop you!" Grabbing a ball, he moved to the shootout line, throwing the ball straight through the hoop, turning to Kaen and saying, "Your turn." With a shrug, Kaen grabbed a ball, moved to a random point behind where Sharpner shot from, and absently threw the ball, one handed, towards the hoop; nothing but net.

Frowning, the muscle-bound blonde moved to the three-point line, making a jump shot that went straight through, without even touching the sides. Shrugging again, Kaen moved to another random point behind him and absently threw again, and again scored nothing but net.

At this point, the rest of the class was more than shocked. From the look of things, Kaen wasn't even trying, and he was showing Sharpner up something fierce. With a growl, Sharpner moved to the centre of the court, laying up with a jump shot, and getting the ball in off the rebound. Smirking, he turned to Kaen and said, "Beat that!"

With another shrug, this time with a grin on his face, Kaen walked over to the right corner of the _opposite_ side of the court, and, with his back facing the net, flung the ball over his shoulder, seemingly at random. The ball sailed through the air for a few long seconds, before flying straight through the hoop; like the two shots before them, nothing but net.

Eyes bugging out of his head, Sharpner spat, "That was a fluke! I demand you do that again!"

Kaen just grinned, "No problem." Turning to Gohan, he whistled once, and, getting the signal, the taller man threw his flame-haired counterpart a new ball. Again Kaen faced away from the net, and again he flung the ball over his shoulder without looking, but the ball didn't fly nearly as high this time, a fact Sharpner didn't realise until it hit him, literally. The ball slammed directly into his forehead, ramping off him and flying through the net, only to be caught by Gohan; when he'd moved there was anyone's guess.

The younger of the two dark-haired young men took a moment to bounce the ball, seemingly working something out in his head, before, with a nod, he threw the ball towards the opposite net. It didn't go through however, instead rebounding off the backboard and going flying back the way it came. Whether by luck or calculation, the ball didn't have enough power to make it all the way, but it did, however, have enough power to reach the blonde jock, who had only just gotten back to his feet when he was again struck on the head, sending him back onto his ass, the ball back through the hoop, and back into Gohan's hands.

From across the court, Kaen just clapped sarcastically, calling, "Show off!" He then walked up to the prone Sharpner, looking down at him and grinning, "Guess this means you lose Bitch Boy. Tomorrow I expect you to either have my 5000 zenni first thing, or have neon green hair when you walk on campus. If neither of these are true, then things will get unpleasant, and believe me, you don't want that to happen."

Threats made, he just walked over to their PE teacher and said, "So, do I pass?"

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Gohan + Ego a world of fun.

Now then, I would like to publicly congratulate ss7gohan for guessing the movie that inspired this series; it was indeed The One, with Jet Li. And yes, it is an awesome film. It will, however, be a little while until the big climactic fight - a grand total of two weeks, in the story, to be exact - so I hope you guys'll stick around 'til then.

Until next time, feel free to drop me a line if you have something you'd like to say that you don't want to put into a review. My door is always open to those who don't wish to flame or ask inane questions.


	7. Explosive Reactions

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 7 - Explosive Reactions

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He ran a hand through his sweat filled hair as he watched the two kids before him spar, the spikes standing several inches from the top of his head and pointing in random direction, in true Saiyan fashion. They were getting better, much better, but there was always room for improvement. The young boy's own gravity defying locks, all pointing up and leading to a triangular-like point, swung violently as he dodged the girl's attack, her black hair held back in a ponytail.

After several more minutes the pair slumped to the ground, the boy turning to him and asking, "Can we take a break now?"

The girl piped up, "Yeah, we've been training for _hours_ now!"

Shaking his head, he replied, "Would he want the pair of you to be wasting time? Would she? No, they'd want both of you to work as hard as you possibly could."

"But we have been!" the young girl exclaimed.

"Yeah!" The boy chimed in, "They may have worked us hard, but they also believed in breaks at least every 4 hours or so!"

He sighed, "I guess I have been working you a bit hard. Alright, here's the deal. I'll let you two have the rest of the day off to rest, but in return, tomorrow I'm gonna work you 'til you drop. Deal?"

"Deal!" They exclaimed together, huge grins splitting their tiny faces.

As they started to run off, he called out, "Hey, wait a minute." The two paused, turning back to him, as he added, "I better not catch you two pulling any pranks. You remember what happened last time I caught you, don't you Oran?" The boy shivered slightly at the memory, so he went on, "And Lime, I expect you to keep your brother in line, not do as he says, alright?" The girl nodded, so he just made a shooing motion as he said, "Fine, run along then."

"Thanks Korin!" They shouted, already fleeing the scene.

He sighed again; he was getting too old to be dealing with little kids again. At age 7, Korin should have settled down with a mate and had a family of his own by now, but he was yet to find the 'one' for him, and now he was stuck training his little brother and sister. Ever since his brother had died, and his mate followed, the twins hadn't been the same, going so far as to change their hair to match their lost family.

The sound of crunching grass drew his attention, indicating someone had landed behind him while he was lost in thought, and he turned around to greet them, freezing as he saw the face; it wasn't possible. "No way..." He muttered, "You... You're dead!"

The figure mumbled to himself, something that sounded like "I see", before speaking, "Where is she? Where's Pi?"

He shook his head, "Don't you remember? You were bonded when you died, and it drove her to accept a suicide mission. She's dead, just like you were meant to be. How did you survive anyway? And for that matter, why did she believe you were dead if you weren't?"

The figure ignored his questions, muttering to himself, "They're both dead? Dammit, that's not supposed to happen! One being dead maybe, but not both. It must be malfunctioning. That means I'm gonna have to return home and get the mongrel thing fixed..."

His musings were interrupted by a tiny male voice calling out, "Kaen? Kaen, is that you?"

Korin interposed himself between the twins and this guy masquerading as his dead brother, turning to them and saying, "Stay back. That's not Kaen; he's dead. It's just someone who looks like him."

"You're partly right," the Kaen look-alike corrected, "I _am_ Kaen, just not the one you know. Or should I say, knew."

The twins dropped into stance, Lime shouting, "What did you do to our brother and sister? Give them back!" Saying this, the pair of them launched himself at the impostor, tiny arms and legs flying, but he blocked them all with minimal effort, slapping the pair of them away like insects.

"I didn't do anything to them." He replied, "That's not to say that I wouldn't have, just that they were dead before I got here. However, if you're so eager to see them again," He paused, pressing a couple of buttons on the Device on his arm, "Then I'm only too happy to comply." He raised his hand, making, and firing, a raw red ball of ki before anyone could react, instantly killing the pair of them.

"You monster! What did you do that for? They were just children!" Korin exclaimed, pointing accusingly at the impostor Kaen, and firing a blast out of his extended finger that dissipated harmlessly a mere inch away from him.

Turning to face the dimensional alternate of his long dead brother, he just remarked, "Be glad the version of you from my dimension is already dead, or you'd be joining them." Wasting no more time on words, he pressed another couple of buttons on the Device, disappearing in a hail of blue lightning and a blinding white light. Korin just sank to his knees; he had sworn to protect them, and he'd failed...

His only comfort was that, now, they were with the brother they loved much more than they ever did him.

o-o-o

He scrubbed a hand through his hair, yawning widely as he tried to stay awake. Trunks had stayed over the night before, and he and Goten had been up until 3 am playing video games before the pair of terrors had finally crashed where they were. Consequently, Gohan didn't get much sleep, and to make matters worse, he'd overslept, and they were out of coffee. His day just kept getting better and better.

And now, here he was, trying _not_ to blow himself up; it was far too early in the morning for a chem. prac, especially for someone who would've been lucky to get 4 hours sleep. As if his day wasn't bad enough, he was paired up with, of all people, Videl; Kaen had stayed with Pi, and Kat and Erasa were together, getting along like a house on fire from what he could hear. Kami only knew where Sharpner was, but Gohan was _far_ from caring about the blonde's location; by the look of things, he had been too scared to show up today after what Kaen put him through yesterday, and obviously hadn't had time to get the 5000 zenni he'd lost.

Yawning again, Gohan cast his eye over the flame-haired time traveller. In his eighteen years of life, Son Gohan had learned many things, and one of those was the ability to tell, purely through sensing a person's ki signature, how active the person currently was, i.e. whether they were fighting (or some other high energy activity), relaxing (or some other medium to low energy activity) or sleeping, and he could tell that Kaen had been awake, and training for a while at that, until at least 3 am, when Gohan himself had finally gone to sleep, and yet here he was, wide awake, just as if he'd had a full nights sleep. He resolved to ask him how he did it.

From what he's sensed of the night before, Pi had gone to sleep long before Kaen had, after a particularly... vigorous activity; Gohan wasn't naive enough to not know just _what_ that was, but he'd rather not think of it. After that, Kaen had seemingly gone out for a couple of hours, returned around 1 in the morning, and began working out. He was still at it at 3 am, so Kami only knew just when he actually went to sleep. And to top it all off, because Kaen _insisted_ on driving to school all the way from the Saiyan village in the 438, he'd have to get up at 7 to have enough time to eat and get to school on time, meaning, at most, he would have gotten 4 hours sleep.

He shook his head; he was far too tired to think straight, and focusing on the private life of one Kaen Avarrdo was _not_ what he wanted to be doing, especially this early in the morning, and especially when he was _supposed_ to be mixing chemicals. He saw his 'lab partner' looking at him strangely, and he opened his mouth to explain, but got caught up in another yawn, so he gave up; he was _far_ too tired to be dealing with Videl, and, luckily, she seemed to realise he was too tired to answer any of the questions she had about him, all of which he could tell she was practically frothing at the mouth to ask.

A series of small explosions from around the room showed that several pairs had already finished the experiment, and that he and Videl were behind the others, but he was still too tired to think straight, so he left everything to her; she seemed to be handling everything well enough without him, but he felt bad about essentially leeching off her. Another quick glance at Kaen showed that he was now looking in _his_ direction, a smirk on his face and a beaker of something in his hand.

It took Gohan's tired mind a few seconds to work out just _why_ Kaen would be smirking at him, but when he did his eyes shot open, and, with a shout of "Down!" he flung himself at Videl, using his body as a shield; she was rather shocked to find that she couldn't escape his grip, but didn't have too long to dwell on it. Within seconds, an explosion rocked the lab, actually blowing out the window next to Kaen and Pi's workstation, and sending the entire class diving for cover, many screaming as they did so.

Now, the students were in no danger of being hurt whatsoever; at the last minute, Kaen had erected a ki shield to contain the damage, but none of them knew that. When the smoke cleared, and the room stopped shaking, there were only three people still standing, Kat, Pi, and Kaen himself, who merely shrugged and said, a grin on his face, "Whoops, guess I added too much..."

Standing upright, Gohan turned to him and shouted, "What the hell was that? You could have hurt someone, maybe even killed them!"

Rolling his eyes, Kaen replied, "Look around you. No one was in any danger; I had everything under control."

Sure enough, casting a quick eye around the lab, or what remained of it, Gohan saw that the explosion was very localised, but, knowing how the chemicals worked, he realised that Kaen himself must have intervened to prevent anyone getting hurt; that shocked him slightly, because he knew how little Kaen thought of the 'weakling humans', and yet he had obviously gone out of his way to make sure that, even though he may have put the fear of Kami into them, none of them were in danger of being hurt.

"Besides," Kaen added, a grin on his face again, "I had to do something to wake you up."

Again Gohan realised Kaen was 100 percent right; he couldn't have been more awake if he tried. Glaring mildly at his friend, Gohan said wryly, "You could have done that without shaking the school to its foundations you know?"

His grin just widened, "Yeah, but that wouldn't have been nearly as much fun."

"You're a real bastard, you know that?"

"Thank you, I try my best."

Mr. Dalton, their Chemistry teacher, just shook his head at the boys' exchange and said, "Mr. Avarrdo, was it really necessary to destroy half my classroom just to wake Mr. Son there up?"

Still grinning, Kaen just replied, "Why yes, yes it was."

Mr. Dalton just started laughing; he knew, both from the 'warning' the school had received, and from Kaen's aptitude test, that the young man was more than capable of handling the chemicals without killing anyone, and he also knew that trying to stop him from such displays was pointless and way too hard. Plus, you couldn't be a high school Chemistry teacher without a few eccentricities. Instead, he just grinned back at him and said, "Well, in the future, when you plan on creating a scene, a little warning would be nice."

"But sir, it's not nearly as fun if people know it's coming," he replied.

The teacher just laughed again before saying, "Be that as it may, I do hope we won't have to repair this room every week because you feel like showing off."

"Of course not sir," Kaen replied, a hint of mock-respect in his tone, "Just every other week." The 30-odd year old teacher just laughed again, and the lesson continued smoothly from there.

o-o-o

"Geez, what a hardass..."

Gohan cast a quick glance back at the young redhead at her comment, noticing the blonde seated below her nod her head in agreement, "And I thought Mr. Ford was a drill sergeant."

After the disaster that was first and second period chemistry, the six friends, or rather, mostly friends (It would be a cold day in hell when Videl and Kaen became friends, and Erasa didn't know him well enough), were now sitting in their normal classroom, undergoing the tutelage of their substitute teacher for physics. Thanks to the now famous glare incident of Monday morning, their original teacher, Mr. Ford, had adamantly refused to teach their class.

There were all sorts of rumours going around, ranging from the mild to the extreme, including Mr. Ford actually being committed to a mental hospital, but like all rumours, they were just that, rumour. The truth was simply that Kaen had terrified the teacher to the core, and, thanks to the warning Bulma had given the administration about Kaen's temper, the man was afraid what would happen if he were to push Kaen too far; Mr. Ford still taught all of his other classes, just not this one.

Gohan was mildly amused that, out of all the teachers in the world, the school had managed to find, and hire, his old tutor Mr. Shuu. The man hadn't changed much in the ten-odd years since Gohan had last seen him, and his teaching style was much like he remembered as well, although sans bullwhip; he winced a bit involuntarily as he remembered how much that had hurt. He noticed Videl glance at him with a look caught between concern and suspicion, but she didn't say anything, and he didn't volunteer the information.

He turned his attention back to the teacher, then immediately tuned out; he had already learnt this when he was 7. Mr. Shuu was setting a blistering pace, and he tore through the work almost as fast as Goten did breakfast; from the looks of things, he was determined to not only catch up on all the work missed from the two days Mr. Ford refused to take the class, but to put the class at least a week ahead in their work.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Videl struggling to keep up, but he bit his tongue and didn't say anything; he didn't think she'd appreciate his concern. From what he'd seen of Videl, she'd rather fail than have someone help her; her pride seemed to refuse to let her ask for, or accept, help from others. She wouldn't even admit there was a problem to begin with.

Erasa, on the other hand, had no such trouble admitting there was a problem, whining, "Aw man, he's going too fast... I missed most of that!"

Gohan raised his hand to get the teacher's attention, but when Mr. Shuu quite obviously ignored him he called out, "Mr. Shuu, you were going too fast. Could you repeat those last few lines?"

Videl felt her heart clench for some reason, and the thought 'How come he'll help Erasa, but won't lift a finger for me?' came unbidden to her mind. She quickly shook her head, growling back at her inner voice, 'What do I care if Gohan helps someone else, it's not like I like him. And I don't need anyone's help, especially his!' Rubbing her temples, she cut her inner argument short before she gave herself another headache like she had yesterday, instead choosing to focus her attention back to the front of the room.

Mr. Shuu picked something up from the desk, cracking it against the desk as he glared up at Gohan; apparently he _did_ have his bullwhip after all. A vein bulging almost comically in his forehead he almost screamed, "Insolent brat! Who are you to demand anything?"

In an ever-increasingly rare moment of Son naiveté, Gohan replied, "Who am I? Son Gohan. Don't you remember me sir? You used to tutor me."

The entire class watched as the blood drained from Mr. Shuu's face at this revelation, and with an ear-shattering scream he dived out the window, shouting incomprehensible things about 'demon children' and 'psycho women with frying pans'. Now, under ordinary circumstances this may not have come as quite as much of a shock to the class as it did, especially after Kaen's performance just two days ago, but there was one problem; the classroom was on the third floor.

Kaen just started laughing as the class burst into excited whispers, saying to no one in particular, although obviously directed in Gohan's direction, "And I thought I could put the fear of Kami into people."

Within moments Mr. Field ran into the room, having heard the scream as he was walking through the hall, demanding answers, "What happened? Who was screaming? Where's the teacher?"

Just like the day before, the whole class started climbing over each other to answer, but he just raised his hands for quiet, pointing at Videl to once again get her reply; he trusted her to tell the truth. "Well sir," she replied, "The scream was from Mr. Shuu. He looked like he'd seen a ghost after he found out who he was..." She gestured vaguely in Gohan's direction, "...and then he dived out the window."

Mr. Field just sighed before, thinking Videl was indicating Kaen, saying, "Mr. Avarrdo, I thought I asked you not to scare any more teachers."

The flame-haired young man just grinned, "As much as I'd like to take credit for this, it wasn't _me_ who he was terrified of."

The principal looked confused, "But then who..." His face lit up in shock as realization hit him of just who Videl had indicated as he cried, "Mr. Son! But, why... how..."

Gohan just shrugged, "I dunno sir. He used to tutor me when I was a kid, and I guess he doesn't have many fond memories of that time."

Mr. Field sighed, shaking his head, "What am I going to do with you two. Two teachers in as many days." Turning his attention to the class as a whole, he added, "Well, you know the drill by now; continue on with your work as you have been until lunch. I'll see if I can round up _another_ teacher by tomorrow, and if you haven't done the prescribed work, you'll only be hurting yourself."

With that he left, shaking his head as he walked out, and, amazingly, the entire class got to work on their own; obviously, the warnings about quiet Kaen had given them the two previous days were still fresh in their mind, and no one wanted another one. And thus, the entire class worked quietly on the required for the rest of the double period until the bell rang, signalling the start of lunch.

Gohan just shook his head as he walked out, praying quietly to Dende that nothing else would go wrong today. He silently wondered just what else _could_ go wrong, but stopped that line of thought as he realised that every time someone says 'It could be worse', it always gets worse...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

And on to day three. After the massive first day, spanning a grand total of four chapters, the rest of the days generally span two chapters, with a few exceptions. This was, admittedly, mainly because I couldn't think of more to do on each day. :)

On a more personal note, I'm glad people are enjoying this series so far. As I'm sure any author will tell you - or any person who creates anything, really - there is no better reward for your effort than for even one person to enjoy your work. Thanks! Stay tuned for the next installment; I have a feeling you'll like it...


	8. Friendly Rivalry

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 8 - Friendly Rivalry

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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His cold, calculating eyes locked onto his prey, studying them. One of them, the female, was definitely the one he'd come here to kill, but what about the male? It was obviously the right target, but the age was wrong; he was supposed to be almost 4, but instead he found a 1-year-old boy. Maybe it was still malfunctioning; it couldn't be, he'd repaired it... Maybe it was never malfunctioning in the first place, but had simply found the wrong target, and his 'repairs' had broken it; after all, the ages had been right that time, and the victims found _looked_ the part, but were the wrong victims.

Clearing his mind, he focused in on what they were saying; maybe he could get some clue as to whether these were the right two or not.

She managed to halt her laughter for a moment; that moment lasted until she looked down at him again.

"Aw come on," He whined, his high-pitched voice causing him to wince, "It's not funny!"Apparently it _was_, because this statement only caused her to laugh harder. He pouted, folding his arms as he said, "How would _you_ like it if you were reverse aged some 3 years 'coz of some failed experiment?"

Ah, so that's what was going on. His target _was_ almost 4, at least in mind and soul, but in a 1-year-old body. The 'failed experiment' bit didn't overly surprise him; his father was a scientific genius, geniuses often get bored, and geniuses aren't always right. He set himself to watching them again, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

"I'm sorry," she said, a smile on her face as she looked down at him, "I shouldn't laugh. But admit it, if it wasn't you it happened to, you'd be laughing as well."

He grumbled something under his breath, which she assumed was his admission.

Giggling a little, she knelt down to his level, a grin on her face, as she commented, "I forgot how cute you were at that age!"

He grumbled under his breath again, this time something she was sure was not flattering, before saying, "Dammit, this sucks! My _younger brother_ is older than me! At least I'm still as strong as I was..."

"You think you've got it bad?" She replied, "In case you haven't noticed, I'm now bonded to a one year old. By the time you'll be old enough to do anything about it again we'll be expected to settle down with a family."

He paled, "You know, I never thought of that..." He paused in thought before adding, "Well, if dad can't fix it, maybe we can get him to do it to you too."

"Why would I want that?" she asked, mildly shocked he'd suggest such a thing.

"'Coz we'd be the same age again." He replied simply, "Plus, it'd be kinda cool to grow up together again, especially since we've already bonded, 'coz we won't be as nervous around each other as we were. Besides which, another 2 years of training before we go on missions again can't hurt."

Her face lit up with a smile, and she was just about to reply in the positive when she saw someone rise out of the forest nearby; it was obvious he'd been watching them for some time. Before she could say anything he burst out of the trees at high speed, his fist slamming into her stomach as he sent her flying.

She dragged herself to her feet, holding her wounded stomach; that punch had really hurt, and she wouldn't be surprised to learn she'd ruptured something internally. She cast her gaze back in the direction of her chibi-mate, and her eyes widened in shock as she saw their assailant holding him off the ground by the throat; a major downside of his now smaller form was his lack of reach. She was doubly shocked to see said assailant looked like a non-chibi version of said mate.

"Let him go!" She screamed, charging towards him, fist outstretched.

He just smirked, "If you say so." Saying this, he flung the teen child directly at her, the momentum of the two cancelling out on contact as they fell to the ground in a heap; it couldn't be called much of a heap, what with him being so much smaller than her, but never-the-less, they wound up with him sprawled across her equally prone form. He didn't wait for them to recover either, merely charging a killing blast and levelling his hand at them.

He did, however, pause to look at them, saying mock sympathetically, "I'm sorry to say, but any and all plans for the future you may have had have now expired." before the pair were blasted out of existence.

o-o-o

His eyes darted around, searching for his attacker; said attacker had disappeared only moments before, and was now overdue to reappear. On instinct alone he blocked the punch to his midsection, using the momentum to throw the taller man over his shoulder, throwing a kick to the man's back in the same motion.

His assailant fell faster than expected though, landing on the ground and lashing out at his remaining leg with his own. Expecting the tactic, he followed his momentum, leaping into the air and spinning, lashing out with his other leg, surprising his opponent as the kick made contact with the back of his now lower than normal head.

Using the force of the kick, his opponent rolled away before leaping back into his stance, and the two stood regarding each other for a moment, the shorter of the two landing on all fours, before the taller of the two grinned, "Not bad. I actually felt that."

Flipping backwards as he leapt off the ground, and landing back in his own stance, he grinned as well, "You're not too bad yourself there Gohan."

It was now lunchtime, and in what had quickly become a tradition, or maybe a habit, the pair of them had eaten their specially constructed lunches and gone off to spar. Kaen was mildly annoyed about the whole lunch thing; after all, after years of being on the run, added to his genetic Saiyan makeup, he didn't really need the energy, but, like all Saiyans, he enjoyed eating almost as much as the other two of the three 'F's' important to Saiyans: Feeding, Fighting, and... well, you get the idea.

Both stood observing each other's stance for any weaknesses, but they both knew it was pointless. After no less than 30 years of training between them, their stances were each perfect; Kaen's current stance favoured offence, and Gohan's defence, but both stances could be easily switched to serve the opposite, plus they both had at least once stance favouring the opposite, and one with overall balance.

Kaen noticed Gohan keeping regulated control of his strength, making sure he was equal to his own, or rather, what Gohan _believed_ was his own level; were Kaen a normal person he would've felt bad about hiding his true strength from his friend, but he was a warrior, and as a warrior you never reveal your hand to your opponent until you have to, friend or foe. Besides, the pair of them could hardly have gone all out anyway, unless they wanted to destroy the school; he _had_ wanted to at least once these past three, or rather two and a half, days, but knew Pi would chew him out if he did anything to ruin her chance of making friends.

With some silent, unknown signal, the two flung themselves at each other again, arms and legs flying at speeds most normal people would have been hard pressed to see as anything more than a blur of colour. It would have been a problem were the two of them somewhere they may be seen, but as it stood they were on the roof of the main building, far from prying eyes. As they truly got into the swing of their fight, they both fell into something uniquely Saiyan to do whilst fighting. They started a conversation.

"So, why were you so buggered this morning?"

Gohan sighed, ducking under the time traveller's fist and sending a retaliatory blow to his ribs before replying, "The demon child stayed over last night, and the two terrors were up until 3am playing video games. I honestly don't know how kaasan got any sleep either, but I suspect she uses sleeping pills." Kaen raised an eyebrow in question, and was about to say something when Gohan added, "How do you deal with it?"

He shrugged, using his right leg to block the flurry of punches Gohan threw his way before replying, "Demon children? Simple. Just beat them to within an inch of their life a couple times and they'll quickly learn not to piss you off..."

"No, not that." Gohan interrupted, "How do you deal with the lack of sleep?"

"What do you mean?" Kaen feigned innocence, but he noticed that Gohan was having none of it.

"Don't play games with me. I know you were up to at least 3am yourself, and training no less, so how do you deal with only getting, at most, four hours sleep?"

"Practice."

He grinned bastardly as Gohan glared darkly at him, but the grin slipped off his face as Gohan sped up, spiking his ki as he slammed his knee into Kaen's stomach, following up with an elbow to his spine, effectively trapping him there. Without waiting for the full-blooded Saiyan to recover, he grabbed the older man's right arm, spun around rapidly for a few revolutions, and launched him across the impromptu arena. It was only instinct and quick reflexes that stopped him from either flying over the edge, or slamming into the concrete of the roof; instead, he managed to quickly gather enough strength to flip around, landing on all fours, feet first, and sliding for a few metres before the momentum wore off.

Despite the pain in his stomach, from Gohan's knee, his spine, from Gohan's elbow, and his lungs, from the air knocked out of him, not to mention the slight burns on his hands from being dragged along the concrete, Kaen's odd sense of humour still forced him to quip sarcastically, "What, you don't like practice?"

Noticing that Gohan was glaring darkly again he held up one hand defensively; he knew he couldn't defend himself against an angry Gohan without revealing things he didn't want to, so he was quickly learning just how far he could push before he went to far. "If you must know, I'll tell you. I was on the run for four years, remember?" He paused, seeing Gohan nod once, before he went on, "Well, when you're on the run you live on high alert. At any moment someone could come for you. The first few months I was lucky if I got five hours sleep a day, if every two days. Eventually, in true Saiyan fashion, my body adapted. Now, if I sleep longer than five hours a night I'm groggy from _over_ sleeping, so I've found things to occupy the extra time."

Gohan nodded, satisfied with the answer, and the fight resumed, as did the conversation. "Alright then, where'd you go? And before you say anything, I know you went out until 1am."

Kaen rolled his eyes as the two locked up, his right hand gripping Gohan's left and vice versa, "I went for a drive. Is that a problem?"

"Felt to me like you came here to Satan City."

A grin slid into place on Kaen's visage as he replied, "I never said _where_ I went driving." Before Gohan could retaliate, either verbally or physically, Kaen leapt off the ground in a back flip, using the grip they each had on each other's fists to perform a 360 without really moving anywhere, uppercut-kicking Gohan in the jaw, and sending the younger man reeling.

The conversation drifted off from there, the new topics fairly safe and simple: life at home, the status of their respective sibling's and their training, their thoughts on school, and similar things. But all good things must come to an end, and this friendly spar did with one sentence, one question, just 10 simple words: "So Gohan, when are you gonna bed that Satan girl?"

Gohan froze, crying out almost loudly enough to heard throughout the school, "WHAT!" A fist to the face was his reply, and he was so stunned by the question he could do nothing to stop his momentum, falling straight on his butt.

Seeing that Gohan's mind was no longer on the fight, Kaen relaxed his stance, still ready to defend himself at a moments notice if need be, and said, "Come on Gohan, don't play games with me. I can see exactly what's going on between the two of you."

Standing up, and dusting himself off, Gohan replied dismissively, "There is _nothing_ going on between us."

"Your tone tells me you wish that were different." Kaen commented sagely, eying Gohan for his reaction.

Gohan shook his head, sitting down on the ledge nearby, "I... No, no I..."

"Gohan," Kaen interrupted, "I know, alright. I've been through it myself, and I know all the signs. It's obvious you like the girl, despite her parentage. She's a fighter, and while I may not like her, from what I've seen of her personality - when she's not hiding behind that mask of hers anyway - she compliments you, so what I want I know is, why haven't you done anything about it?"

The demi-Saiyan sighed, casting his gaze at the concrete ground before looking back up at him again and replying, "Alright, yes, I do like her; happy? Yes, I would like to get together with her; as you said, she's a fighter, and there's nothing more hot than a girl who knows how to kick some ass." Kaen nodded, a smile on his face. He may not have liked that Satan girl, but he could admit, at least in his own mind, that she was quite attractive; nothing compared to Pi of course, but still. "But it doesn't matter how I feel." Gohan continued, "She's never going to feel the same way back. She could have anyone she wanted..." He paused, looking at Kaen again for a moment before appending, "...well, _almost_ anyone she wanted; why would she want me?"

Kaen just raised an eyebrow, whether in question, shock, confusion, or a mix of all three even he didn't know. 'Kami, can he not see the way she looks at him? She wants him as badly as he does her, whether she'll admit it to herself or not. How can he not notice? Does he walk around with his eyes closed?' He debated with himself whether to say this to Gohan, or any number of other things, but he just shook his head, saying, "Gohan, trust your instincts. You're a Saiyan; you'll live long enough to regret it otherwise."

With this, he just grabbed his bag from near the door (he'd brought it up here with him today), and left, leaving Gohan to his thoughts.

o-o-o

Videl turned from her locker as she heard the stairwell door open, and was mildly surprised to see Kaen come out. She knew he hadn't been on the lower levels - her locker, like her normal classroom, was on the third floor - so that meant he had to have been on the roof. 'So, that's where they go...'

Kaen, for his part, paid no attention to her. He knew she was there of course, but he made no effort to acknowledge her presence; after all, it's not like the two of them were friends, or even acquaintances. Videl, however, came to a quick decision; now that she had him alone, she was going to get some answers from the enigmatic man. She started simple, "So, you and Gohan have a good fight?"

He just ignored her, starting to walk past, but she was having none of it, "What, you get beaten did you? That why you're finished early" He continued to ignore her, so she slammed her locker shut, stomped her foot angrily, and shouted, "What the hell is your problem?"

That got his attention. He paused, turning back to face her, and replied in an eerily calm voice, "My problem is you, and that clown of a father of yours."

"Why do you hate my father?"

"I have nothing but contempt for your father." He replied acidly, "He is a liar and a fraud, a man who has built his fame by stepping on the backs of the true masters of the arts, a fool who insults the skills of others because he's too much of an idiot to learn them himself. You want the truth? I don't believe that he beat Cell; I never did." That much was true, he never did believe Hercule beat Cell; he was told from day one that Gohan had.

Videl was shocked by this; she'd never met anyone else who thought like this about her father. 'At least this answers one of my questions,' she thought to herself, 'His feelings prove that he can obviously do those so-called 'tricks' himself.' "But why do you hate me? I'm nothing like my father."

"So you say, but in the time I've been here I've seen you do nothing but dance around in his shadow, using _his_ fame to bolster your own reputation." Kaen commented coldly, and she hung her head as the shame hit her; he was right, as much as she was loath to admit it. Before she could say anything, he continued, "If you must know, I don't hate you. I pity you; you've spent the past seven years living a lie. I'm a warrior born, pride is everything, and where I come from, we kill things we pity more often than not. The fact I can't irritates me, so I need some way to take out that irritation." He finished with a smirk on his face, and without waiting for her reaction, he walked off, leaving her, like Gohan, to her thoughts.

o-o-o

It was now PE, the final class of the day, and their teacher had informed them the day before they would be playing soccer, one of the few Earth sports Kaen _did_ know. He was currently leaning against one of the goals, waiting for the girls to finish getting changed. He, like usual, had adamantly refused to wear the uniform, and wore his usual outfit. Pi was trying to get him to wear something other than his usual black pants and red muscle shirt, and he knew she'd get her way eventually - she always did - but he'd put up resistance for a while; giving in later would just mean she owed him one.

He noticed the girls approaching, all four of them; well, his ears noticed them long before they came into sight. Kat and Erasa were chatting animatedly about something, reaching hither-to unheard of vocal speeds; he noticed that Videl refused to even look at him. He didn't see Gohan yet though, but he'd gone to help the teacher with something, or so he said. Sure enough, mere moments later Gohan walked up, Mr. Jones walking beside him, each holding a soccer ball; they'd brought a spare, just in case. Gohan also had a box of something under his other arm, but he couldn't see what was in there.

"So Kaen," the middle aged PE teacher began, "you've proven yourself to be quite a sportsman. You know anything about soccer?"

Kaen clicked his fingers at Gohan, and, getting the signal, Gohan absently tossed him the ball he was holding. He caught the ball, but not how they expected; he caught it on his raised right leg. He tossed the ball into the air, landing it on his head, before he tilted his head back and rolled the ball down his shoulders, before landing the ball on the sole of his right foot, now raised behind him. Grinning at them, he replied, "A little bit."

In an increasingly rare event, given all he'd seen in his eighteen years of life, Gohan was utterly shocked. "Where did you learn how to do that?" He exclaimed.

Juggling the ball for a bit longer, he proceeded to bounce it off his head, amazingly without disturbing his hair, before replying, "Late night TV. That and good co-ordination."

The teacher, coming out of his shock, started laughing, "Well Mr. Avarrdo, aren't you just full of surprises." Addressing the rest of the class, he said, "As you know, today we're playing soccer. As the past two days have shown, Kaen and Gohan here are unbeatable while on the same team, so they will be the two captains."

That shook Videl from her thoughts; she'd _always_ been selected as one of the captains. Sure, she knew this was, in part, because of the fame that came with her father's name, but she'd always liked to think a greater part was the fact she was the most athletic and physically fit person in the school. Then these two came along, managing to out shine her by leaps and bounds, and it annoyed her to no end; for some reason, while she hated Kaen with every fibre of her being, she couldn't bring herself to do the same for Gohan, but she didn't know why.

The two teams were formed in little to no time; in the student's mind, it didn't matter who out of these two was the captain of their team, it would be a dynamite game. Videl had ended up on Gohan's team, and Pi and Kat on Kaen's, and Videl and Kat were made goalies; Pi was slightly miffed he didn't pick her as the goalie, but he gave a valid excuse: he didn't want her that far away from him. That, and he wanted the game to be a bit more fair; after all, their goalie was only human.

The box Gohan had brought, it turned out, contained those coloured singlets schools purchase for use dividing a class into teams, and, whether by luck or fate, the two colours were blue and red; Kaen's team wore red, and Gohan's blue. That settled, the two teams moved out onto the field, and the game began.

The game was at least as impressive as everyone believed. Sure, Gohan and Kaen spent more time showing off and trying to outdo each other than actually playing, like juggling the ball without using their arms, or power sliding each other. At one point, as Gohan tried to trip up Kaen, he had kicked the ball into the air with his right leg, then following it by jumping off his left and spinning backwards, kicking the ball as he leapt over Gohan. Despite their showmanship, however, they still managed to score 5 goals in the twenty minutes that marked half time. Each.

When the teams switched sides, the boys thought they'd make things fairer for the other students; rather, they thought they'd let the others on their team actually get a chance to do something with the ball. They took over the position as goalie. Needless to say, no more goals were scored that game.

o-o-o

"Hey Gohan, you need a ride?"

Kaen knew that Gohan used the Instant Transmission technique his father had taught him to get to and from school, and thus he _never_ needed a ride, but he asked anyway for a cover story. Besides, asking if he wanted a ride was basically an informal way of saying 'Do you want to crash at my place for the next few hours?'

"Sure, why not." Gohan replied, shocking everyone, "I'll have to let kaasan know where I am, but other than that I don't see why not. Only problem is, how? You guys ride bikes remember?"

Kaen just shrugged, decapsulating his bike as his sister did the same, "I'm sure Kat won't mind giving you a lift, right?"

Kat shrugged herself as she climbed aboard her bike, "Sure, hop on."

Kaen was amused to say the least to see that Videl, in her quickly established tradition of hunting Gohan down after school, walked out of the main building _just_ as Gohan climbed on behind the feisty redhead, placing his hands, purely platonically, on her waist, to hold on when the bike took off.

Videl felt her heart clench up for some reason as she saw Gohan place his hands on the younger girl like that; what was up there? Were the two of them going out? 'I didn't think he liked that kind of woman... I can't see what he sees in her...' Videl shook her head; why did she care if they were going out? It's not like she was interested in him or anything...

Kat looked back at Gohan, amusement dancing through her golden eyes, although her helmet hid the rest of her face. "Keep your hands on the bike lover boy. That's what the handles are there for."

He grinned back at her, "Aww, you're no fun."

"Gohan, don't make me rip your arms off at the shoulder." Kaen glared at him through his helmet, although it was more than obvious it was just a bit of fun; Kaen knew there was nothing between them, and never would be. After all, _he_ knew that Satan girl was gonna be the demi-Saiyan's mate. Gohan just grinned back at him, but he _did_ let go of her, instead opting to take the safe route and use the hand holds; after all, he knew Kaen was very protective of his little sister, and for good reason, so what started as a bit of fun could quickly turn into a life or death situation.

Kaen just cast a quick glance at the pig-tailed girl standing in the doorway of the school, amusement still clearly in his eyes, before he flipped his visor down and declared, "Come on Kat, let's see if you can keep up."

The two took off within seconds of each other, Kaen taking a quick lead, but Videl paid them no mind. Ever since she'd found out he had diplomatic immunity, she tried to stop caring what he did, but she knew if she paid attention to what he was doing she'd try and stop him, so she took the coward's way out and ignored it.

All in all, it had been a very confusing day for her, but at least she had _one_ answer. Kaen was a practitioner of the true martial arts, and obviously knew more than he was letting on about many of the questions she wanted answers to, but for now, she'd take her time. If she let her impatience get the better of her, she'd make mistakes, and above all, Videl Satan could not afford to make mistakes now.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Wow, that chapter just didn't want to finish... I had originally intended to have more in there about the soccer game, but at the same time I didn't want the chapter getting too long. Ah well, compromises must be made. If you guys want, I could try expanding on it, add it in as an extra bit to later chapters or somethin'.

I'm glad you guys liked that bit with Mr. Shuu. I'm quite pleased with how that turned out myself. Now, as for that little scene with Videl and her jealousy, the original idea I'd had was for Videl herself to voice needing help, and for Gohan to come to her aid, but I quickly realised that wouldn't work; after all, Videl's not likely to accept help from someone else. So, instead we have Gohan helping someone else, and Videl's inner conflict about it; Erasa was chosen as the 'someone else' because I felt she was the most likely to voice having trouble without introducing a new character.

Now, just a short warning: the next chapter or two is a little light on the Gohan x Videl goodness, but it does help set the scene for some other events I'll be introducing later, so please bear with me. Believe me, come chapter 11 you'll be glad you stuck around...


	9. A Break In The Norm

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 9 - A Break In The Norm

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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The sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating two sleeping teens, one, a female, lying partially across the second, a male, her head resting on his chest. Within moments, her eyes fluttered open, a smile gracing her features at the familiar warmth she woke up in, and the arms around her. She loved waking up like this; could there possibly be anything better than waking up in your mate's arms?

Apparently it could, as, barely a second later, he awoke, his first action upon doing so to reach up and kiss her, before whispering, "Good morning."

She smiled again, running a hand through his long black hair, before replying, "Good morning yourself. Now come on, get up." Her grin widened into more of a smirk as she added, "It's time to train."

His cold gaze sought out his targets with almost rehearsed precision, but rare shock graced his features as he saw the pair that exited the quaint little house in the countryside. It was quite obviously the right two people, and yet... it wasn't. He set his mind to pondering out the possible solutions as he observed the two commence their early morning training ritual.

His instincts told him to just kill them and be done with it, but his mind reasoned that just because... something told him that these were the ones, that didn't mean they were; in all honesty, he didn't know how he knew these were the two he was after, but he just named it a hunch and called it a day. He didn't try and listen to his heart and gauge it's reaction; it had stopped working the second She had been taken from him.

He sat there for what had to be an hour, debating internally about just what course of action to take, before deciding to cover all bases and make sure that these were the right targets. However, there was only one way he could think of to do that, and that was to actually talk to them, may Kami have mercy on his soul...

She paused mid swing as she observed the stranger emerge from the undergrowth, rounding on him and barking, "What are you doing here? I don't know you!"

He ceased his walk about ten feet away from them, hands raised defensively, "My apologies for disturbing your training, but I was in the area, and I couldn't help but notice your form. Very impressive."

Before she could launch into a tirade, her mate put a hand on her shoulder, that single gesture saying more than words could in this situation. There was just... something familiar about this new guy that made him trust him; it was that same something that made her cautious. Shaking his head, his long black ponytail swinging with each movement, he said, "That's all well and good, but you never answered her question."

"I'm just looking for someone. Or rather, a couple of someone's. You could say I'm from around here, or used to be in any case," the stranger replied with a shrug.

Relaxing out of her stance, the young woman asked, "So what's your name then, and who are you looking for? Maybe we can help." She told herself that she was only helping because the sooner she got rid of this interloper, the more time she'd have to spend with her mate, but she knew that wasn't the full reason; truth be told, she wanted to find out what made him feel so familiar to her.

He considered his options again, before deciding, 'what the hell? What can it hurt to tell her? Besides, I'd like to see her reaction, assuming she is who I think she is.' "My name is Kaen."

Laughter certainly wasn't the reaction he thought he'd get, although it had been on the list of possible reactions. Between peals of laughter, the girl managed to get out, "But... Kaen is a girl's name! I should know, 'coz it's mine."

Glaring at the couple, he replied, "Well, it's a guy's name where I come from, and everywhere else I've been." Looking from the spiky haired girl to the guy with the long black ponytail, he stated, "So, that would make you Pi then I assume?"

Their laughter died in their throats, but before they could say anything another girl landed, looking, like this girl-Kaen, about 4-ish. "Who's your friend?"

Stranger forgotten momentarily, Kaen turned to her friend and cried, "Hey Vega, this is..."

"_Princess_ Vega," the girl corrected with a scowl, "You're lucky I don't make you call me 'Your Highness'."

"Aww come on," the flame haired girl whined, "We've been friends _forever_, and you're _still_ trying to make me call you 'Princess'? You didn't even tell me you _were_ the princess until we'd been friends for almost a full year!"

The girl - Vega - wiped the scowl from her face as she muttered, "Whatever." Casting her gaze back on guy-Kaen, she said, "You never told me who he was."

Girl-Kaen rolled her eyes, "I was about to when you interrupted me. As I was saying, this is some guy claiming to be looking for someone, and going by the name 'Kaen'."

The girl grinned, "Kaen is it?" She looked him over, gauging his strength from how he held himself, before saying, "And a Saiyan to boot. You've got some guts running around using a girl's name."

He too rolled his eyes, "You can call me 'Kapskaen' if it's too much for your little girl brain _Vega_. Besides, if anything, it's a unisex name."

Vega's eyes narrowed, both at his taunt, and the derisive way he used her name, deliberately avoiding giving her the title she was rightfully due. "Gutsy indeed. Are you strong?"

"The strongest."

The girl grinned, the look on her face shifting to one that was, dare he say, almost predatory as she said, "Well then, how about you and me go a little one-on-one some time? I've got the perfect place for a little private tussle."

His jaw dropped in a rare moment of shock; surely he was imagining things. Surely this... 'Vega'... had not just hit on him. Gathering his wits, he shook his head, replying, "I've already got a mate."

"I never said I wanted a mate," the girl replied with a hungry grin as she quite obviously looked him over, "Just a little... private tutelage. None of my teachers have ever been quite as... powerful as you, and I'm eager to see what you could do." She paused, and he could've sworn he saw her shiver as she licked her teeth, "_Very_ eager."

His eyes narrowed as his ki began to rise; he'd always known the Vegeta line was promiscuous, rubbing up against anything that would hold still long enough, but this was going too far. The girl seemed to quickly switch from aroused to terrified as she took notice of his dark glare, but before she could say or do anything he raised his hands and fired, the collected ki blasting her out of existence.

Girl-Kaen gasped in shock, exclaiming, "Why? Why did you murder her?"

"I didn't murder her," Guy-Kaen replied, "I put her out of her misery. If Vegeta saw what a slut she was he'd have a heart attack."

Pi's eyes widened in shock as he almost whispered, "'Vegeta'..." Realisation dawned on his face, and he said, "Those people you're looking for, it's us isn't it?"

"Yes."

Girl-Kaen too seemed to have reached the same conclusion as she added, "You're going to kill us aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Why?" The girl wasn't afraid exactly; Saiyans didn't fear death. That didn't mean she _wanted_ to die though.

He smiled, a sad smile, as he raised his hand to aim at them, ki collecting in his palm, "Because it's the only way for me to bring her back."

"Who?"

"My mate."

Both girl-Kaen and Pi nodded once in understanding; if anything happened to one of them, they'd have done anything to bring that person back. Moving to embrace his mate one final time in life, Pi looked to him and made one final request; "Just make it quick, please?"

He nodded, and granted their final wish, sending the couple off to the next life. Together.

o-o-o

The young girl snuggled deeper into her pillow as she felt the warm rays of the sun against her back; well, her 'pillow' was the bare chest of her long-time-boyfriend-cum-bondmate, but she'd slept like this for a long time now, so long in fact that she now felt awkward sleeping with her head on an actual pillow.

She was used to waking up to find his arms around her now; sure, when he'd first started staying in bed until she got up it was a little weird at first, but that was only because she'd gotten used to him being gone by then, and having started training. Well, when he first started staying in bed _after_ they became mates; she didn't count the time they'd slept together, 'platonically', back on Vegeta-Sei anymore. He had said himself that he wasn't the boy she knew from back home anymore, and he was right, so she only counted from the point he became who he was today.

Now it was a common occurrence to wake up with him, so common that finding him gone was almost blue moon-esque in rarity. She knew he slept roughly half as long as she did, and that he was active at night after she went to sleep, but regardless of what he did he was always there when she fell asleep, and when she woke up; it meant a lot to her, so he did it for her.

He smiled up at her as she sat up slightly, just enough to look him in the eyes; as usual, he was awake before her. She was about to say something when he gently ran the fingers of his left hand across her cheek, leaning up to kiss her intimately. Breaking the kiss moments later, he whispered, "Sleep well?"

She smiled back at him, "I always sleep well with you as my pillow."

He laughed quietly, the rumble of his chest shaking her slightly, before he made a mock-bow while still lying down, saying jokingly, "I am happy to serve mistress."

Her smile turned into a playful smirk, "So you should be slave. You've been very disobedient lately haven't you? Looks like I might have to punish you..."

She shivered slightly as his right hand ran down her back, his fingers sending little sparks through her nerves before coming to rest on the base of her tail. His index finger began making slow circles around the bundle of nerves that was the base of her tail as he leaned up and whispered huskily into her ear, "Please do."

She moaned softly at the feelings running through her body; she was always pleasantly surprised just how different he was behind closed doors. While he may have held himself aloof where others could see him, when it was just the two of them he no longer had any problems showing her just how much he loved her, even if he rarely ever spoke the words 'I love you'; those three little words could always make her go weak at the knees and swoon, so it was probably for the best he didn't use them all the time.

Fighting down her urges, she gently pushed his hands away, almost whimpering at the loss of his touch, before saying, "Not now. As much as I'd like to continue where we left off last night, we need to get up and get ready for school. Besides which..." her stomach decided to make itself known then, Kaen's following suit soon after, "...I'm hungry, so it's time for breakfast."

With a sigh, he released her, "If you insist... However," he gently ran his hand down her tail as she started to get up, a feather touch at best, but almost enough to make her knees give way, "You can count on me finishing this tonight."

He kissed him quickly, lest she get sucked back into her lusts, breaking away and saying, "I'll hold you to that Kaen." She quickly got changed into what she planned to wear for the day, and headed out to prepare breakfast, knowing he'd be along well before she was done.

o-o-o

She stood at one of the many stoves in the large Saiyan-style kitchen, no less than half a dozen things cooking at once. If anyone ever asked her how she managed to cook so much food, the only answers she could have given would be skill, practice, and determination, because beyond that she had none. Sure, she could have had some servant robots like Bulma did, but Bulma only used those because her own cooking skills were about as bad as her skill with machines was good. Besides, Pi enjoyed cooking, and more than that, she enjoyed Kaen eating food _she_ prepared; there was little more satisfying to a Saiyan woman than knowing your mate enjoyed your cooking.

A wide yawn drew her attention for a moment, as she noticed a newcomer into her domain, greeting accordingly, "Morning Kat. Sleep well?" Kaen and her had taken the young redhead in when they settled down in the little village their parents had set up over in the 438 (why they'd chosen here exactly was anyone's guess, but she knew they'd settled in the country, despite having residences in the City as well, because they liked the peace and quiet).

Truth be told, Kat hadn't really had anywhere else to go; Oran and Lime had just moved back in with their parents, but as much as Kat called Avarrdo and April 'dad' and 'mum', Pi knew she wasn't comfortable enough with having them as her parents to actually live with them. She couldn't exactly have lived on her own either, because she was too much of a people-person, too used to being around others more often than not, so the couple took her in, setting her up with her own sound-proofed room _away_ from their master bedroom, with the other spare rooms should the twins, or anyone else, stay over. Pi fought back as laugh as she remembered Kaen calling Kat 'a stray that he rescued, fed, and now couldn't get rid of,' but as much as Kat had scowled, all three knew he was just joking; he loved her easily as much as he did either of the twins.

The cat-girl yawned again before replying, "Kinda. I was up a little late though; I followed Kaen last night when he went out."

"Really?" Pi asked, her interest piqued as she returned to her duties, "Where'd he go?" Ever since she'd first found out he went out at night she always wondered where he'd gone, as had Kat, but it seemed the younger, in keeping with the adage about cats and curiosity, had been the first to act.

Sensing her brother's ki beginning to head in their direction, she quickly blurted out, "I'll tell you later," before spinning around, smiling widely as the broad, muscled form of Kaen came into view, "Morning bro!"

A small smile on his face, he messed up her hair affectionately, causing her, as usual, to scowl at him, "Mornin' yourself. You'll tell Pi what later?"

"Everything and nothing dear," Pi replied, throwing the last of the food over her shoulder onto the table with practiced precision, most of it in the centre of the table, with a single plate loaded with food landing apart from the rest; Kat's place.

The three of them sat down, and in a quickly established ritual, once the consumption of food began, all attempts at verbal communication ceased. Pi was just glad that the Nameks, Viola in particular, had taught Kat how to use telepathy, and helped Kaen and herself develop theirs, so the three could still engage in non-verbal communication.

Pi: _"Kaen, are you wearing the same outfit again? When are you going to wear something else?"_

Kaen: _"There's nothing wrong with what I'm wearing. Besides, I don't see you getting on Kat's case for sticking to a style."_

Kat: _"Hey, you two leave me out of this. It's none of my concern."_

Pi: _"Actually Kat, he's got a point. I know you have more clothes than that, but you almost never wear them."_

Kat: _"Traitor... (it wasn't sure whether that was directed at Kaen or Pi, so probably both) I'll tell you what, when you (Kaen) wear a new outfit, I will too. Deal?"_

Kaen: _"(a mental eye-roll) Sure, whatever. Not like I really care anyway."_

Pi: _"You never said when..."_

Kaen: _"(another eye-roll) How about never? Is never good for you?"_

Pi let that particular conversation drop; Kaen was being stubborn like always, but she knew it would only be so long before he'd give in. She might have to give him something to _make_ him give in, but she didn't really care about that. She knew he was just being stubborn for that exact reason, but it was just one of the little quirks of their relationship; he'd refuse to do something, she'd do something for him, often something she also wanted to do for herself, and she'd get her way. Of course, he could have just given her what she wanted from the word go, and she could have done the same for him, but theirs was a system that had stood ever since they'd first become 'friends' at their parents orders, although the 'somethings' had obviously changed with age.

The conversations carried on passively from there, Kat and Pi holding up most of it, and before too long the three of them had finished their morning meal. That done, and the dishes piled into the massive dishwasher (she really had to thank Bulma for that one) the girls rushed around, finishing getting ready for school. Pi noticed absently that Kaen wasn't getting himself ready, but she didn't worry about it; it's not like he went to learn or anything. He went for her.

Bags assembled, and lunches acquired, the three of them climbed onto the bikes, Pi sitting behind her mate. This was another one of those things that they didn't have to do, but did anyway. For Kaen, it was a time to have Pi pressed against his back for a prolonged period; for Pi, a chance to wrap her arms around her mate, and keep them there, even while in the most public of places; for Kat, an opportunity to spend some more time with her family. Not one of the three was game enough to voice these thoughts though, for fear it would break the magic of the moment, so they stuck to the excuse of spending an hour on the road to get to and from Satan City.

o-o-o

When the pair of bikes drew up outside the school, Pi reluctantly let go of her mate, forcing back a disappointed groan at having to do so. Climbing off, she was surprised to find that Kaen hadn't gotten off with her; he'd taken off his helmet, but that was as far as he'd gotten. She turned to him for an explanation, a confused and questioning look on her face, "Aren't you coming?"

He sighed, "I just remembered, I can't. I've got other things to do today that take priority..."

Her confusion escalated; what 'other things' could he possibly have to do that would take priority over spending time with her, protecting Kat, and annoying Gohan? "Like?"

Another sigh, "Well, when I went over there yesterday Vegeta was being an ass. Well, he's always an ass, but yesterday he was worse. Going off about 'how I don't train enough', 'how I'm wasting my time' and 'how his representative should not be so weak', and so on... You know how he is."

She nodded; she did indeed know how Vegeta was. Ironically, he was remarkably like Kaen himself used to be before he decided his mate came before his never-ending quest for more power. She could tell that there was something else Kaen wasn't telling her; he was telling the truth, but it was what he wasn't saying that she was interested in. Vegeta or no Vegeta, Kaen wouldn't normally take a day off to spend doing nothing but training, especially when he trained every night after she went to bed, but if he wanted her to think he would, she'd let him.

Leaning over, she kissed him quickly, knowing he wasn't much for public displays of affection; he'd never start any himself, and while he wouldn't fight them, he wasn't too fond of her starting them either. "Alright then, don't work yourself too hard on his account then." Unlike Gohan, Pi knew the three reasons Vegeta had made Kaen his ambassador:

1) He wanted a strong training partner, and Kaen was reported as being the strongest non-Earth Saiyan bar Vegeta himself.

2) His ambassador had to be well known in the Saiyan community, so who better than the one Saiyan who'd stood against Frieza?

3) Most importantly, Kaen was chosen because her uncle Truniz, her father Kellre, and her father-in-law Avarrdo had all refused the job.

He just smiled a bit and nodded briefly, reaching into one of the many pockets of his trench coat and pulling out a capsule. He pulled her towards him, slipping it into her back pocket as he whispered a few last minute things into her ear (after having made sure no one was watching, of course). Releasing her, he donned his helmet again, gunning the bike into life again and speeding off.

"Where's he going?" Kat asked, surprising her a bit.

Pi just smiled again, "It's nothing important. Come on, let's get to class. I've been put in charge of you today little missy, so don't expect me to go easy on you."

The redhead just giggled, "If you say so sis." Before anyone else could speak, the warning bell rang, and with a quick glance at each other, the two girls took off in a run, aiming to make it to class before the second bell.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Okay, before anyone says anything, yes, I am well aware that Vega's (Vegeta's) age is wrong. I am also aware that I had his age wrong in The Phoenix Chronicles, having him 5 when Vegeta-Sei was destroyed instead of 10 as in the series. However, the joy of working with AU's, or in this case AU's _within_ AU's, is that I can butcher the timeline to suit my own needs, and this was too funny an opportunity to pass up.

Now, as today is my birthday, I thought I'd treat my loyal readers by providing two chapters in one day. That, and I don't expect this chapter alone to satisfy a lot of people...


	10. While The Cat's Away

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 10 - While The Cat's Away

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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She looked up from her portable console to observe his form herself. To anyone else, it would look as if he were sparring with himself, fighting the air, but she knew the truth; he was currently in the middle of a virtual sparring program, fighting virtual enemies. And he was getting better and better at it.

His accuracy was almost at 100 in the weapons training module, and his kill tally in the melee module was breaking all estimations. And to think, this was _after_ she'd told her father that he needed a more advanced training AI. The AI had been rebuilt totally randomised; in her father's own words, "There is no way to predict what it will do next. You never know whether it will attack, spawn more enemies, or simply do nothing." 'Well', she thought to herself as she looked back over the data, 'somehow, he _can_ predict what it will do next.'

There was no other way around it, the only conclusion she could reach was that, somehow, he was able to predict what the unpredictable AI was going to do; his test results were near perfect. It couldn't have been something about the program either, because he seemed to have that same ability when the two of them fought. Normally, she would've just said that this was because they'd trained together so long that they knew each other that well, but the additional training data was too coincidental, and she didn't believe in coincidences.

For a while she'd thought that maybe the battle suit his father had constructed was the key, but, unless her suit was different, that theory didn't hold water. Besides, Kaen still fought that well _without_ the suit, but his predictions seemed a little less accurate. The only conclusion she could reach was that somehow the suit had awakened some hidden ability of his...

Her train of thought was rather abruptly derailed by the hand placed on her shoulder, or more accurately, by the _other_ hand swiftly thrust through her stomach from behind. The pain was immense, and she knew that, in his current condition, her partner would never know she was in trouble, so she did the only thing she could think of; she blasted the computer. With that gone, the training program abruptly ended.

"Hey, what's the idea cutting me off like that? I was having fu..." He trailed off as he took in the scene before him, noticing the fist through his partner's stomach, and shouting, "What did you do to her?"

The dark figure, her attacker, just chuckled, "Don't worry, she'll live long enough to see that tin can become your coffin. If she makes it that far, I'll put her out of her misery myself."

"YOU MONSTER!" He lunged towards the shadow-clad assailant, fist drawn back and ready to strike. Suddenly, he got the feeling his opponent would try and punch him, hard, in the stomach, but he made no move to stop it; the suit was designed to handle much more than this guy could put out.

There was a resounding 'clank' as the fist made contact with the metal exosuit, and his assailant looked at him with shock; the same shock he knew must have been on his own face. There was no way... It just wasn't possible. His assailant was him!

Jumping back, he cried, "Who the hell are you? Why in Kami's name do you look like me?"

The figure chuckled again, "You know, I debated for a while as to what to call myself. You see boy, I look like you because I _am_ you, or was at least, before I started my hunt, just a version of you from a different dimension. Now, however, I am so much more, so I needed a new name. I am Nijuushin. Feel privileged mortal, you are the first to hear my new name."

'Nijuushin? Doppelganger? Wait, mortal? What the hell is this guy?' "What are you?"

"What I am is not as important as what I _will_ be," Nijuushin grinned, "I will become a god. And for that to happen, you must die! It's just a shame I'll have to destroy that suit to do so; it looks so useful. Inferno Blast!"

Kaen made no effort to dodge, merely raising an eyebrow behind his metal helmet, "Fire? That's your big plan? I hate to break your plan 'Nijuushin', but this suit was designed for planetary re-entry, and built tough enough to stand up to a blow from a full powered Frieza himself." As the suit began to heat up, he added, "And if your plan is to cook me out of this thing, you're wasting both our time; if you _are_ me, you should know I'm practically heat-proof."

Nijuushin cackled, "No dear boy, I have a much better plan in mind." All too late did the premonition come to Kaen. By the time it had happened, it was too late, as was evidenced by the fist through his stomach, "You, of all people, should know metal gets weaker when it heats up."

Kaen groaned; the pain was almost unbearable, but if Pi could survive this, so could he. Before he could do anything though, Nijuushin spoke again, "Oh, and did you know that a ki blast is _so_ much more effective if placed _inside_ the body?"

His eyes widened in shock, that shock doubling when he realised just how close they were to Pi, but by then, it was too late; one massive explosion of ki later, and not even atoms of the couple remained. With another cackle, evidence of his ever-increasing insanity, Nijuushin disappeared in a hail of white light and blue lightning; his work here was done.

o-o-o

She yawned broadly, resting her head on her desk as she decided to use the last 30 minutes before lunch to get a little more sleep. Without Kaen here, this school was remarkably boring, and the fact she didn't get much sleep last night didn't help any either. She wasn't worried about sleeping in class; the teachers were too scared to call her down on it. Ms. Smith, their history teacher, had tried, but she stopped the second her big sister had pulled out her cell phone and informed everyone she was ringing Kaen.

Word had got out remarkably quickly that Kaen was absent today, so quickly in fact that Sharpner had actually turned up to second period, despite being a whole period late to class. Judging by the huge smirk on his face, he'd figured that, with Kaen not being here, he'd gotten out of his debt; wrong. The memory brought a smile to her tired face; that stupid grin had slipped off his greasy face the second Pi had informed him that Kaen had left her in charge of _all_ his business for the day, including the collection of the money the blonde owed.

--Flashback - roughly an hour ago--

"Why are you in such a good mood Sharp?" the bubbly blonde beside him asked.

"'Coz I dodged a bullet. With freak-boy absent, I'm off scott free."

"That's where you're wrong. Dead wrong," Pi remarked, startling the boy, "Kaen left me in charge of everything today, and I'm not as nice about it as he is, which means you've got until three o'clock to come up with the six thousand zenni before I exact... alternate payment."

"Six thousand! But I only owe him five!" Sharpner exclaimed; luckily, it was the period between classes, so there were no teachers around to annoy. Unfortunately for the blonde, that also meant there were no teachers around to help him.

"I know. Five thousand, plus 10 interest, plus a surcharge for that 'freak-boy' comment. Either I get the money before school ends, or I shave you bald and tattoo Kaen's symbol into your skull."

"Why his symbol and not your own?" The blonde asked, temporarily forgetting just _who_ it would be happening to.

"Hey! Are you a loanshark? Do you know how these things work? You owe the money to _Kaen_, and as such, it is _his_ symbol. If you owed _me_ money, it would be mine."

Turning to the dark haired girl two seats down, he asked, "Aren't you going to stop her Videl?"

The pigtailed girl just shook her head, "Can't. Diplomatic immunity. Besides..." she added, a grin forming on her face, "I wanna see her go through with it."

--End Flashback--

The bell shook her roughly from her thoughts; had the class ended already? Apparently, judging from the fact everyone was leaving, and that her sister was calling her name and waving a hand in front of her face, "Come on Kat, it's lunch time."

She laughed a bit nervously, "Sorry about that, just spaced out for a while."

Pi just smiled, "Don't worry about it, I know you're tired." The older girl's face filled with recollection as she added, "Hey, I just realised that you never told me where Kaen went last night."

The redhead just yawned widely, replying, "Later. Food first." Another yawn, and she added, "And maybe some coffee."

o-o-o

"Alright, it's later. Spill."

Kat groaned; she was right, it _was_ later, but she didn't want to have to give the story in front of their new friends. However, she could tell that there was no way of talking the girl out of it, so she said, "Alright then, I'll tell you. It started with a phone call..."

--Flashback - last night--

"What's up Hawk?"

She paused outside the door, pressing herself against the wall as she attempted to listen in. She'd been on her way for a midnight snack (even if it _was_ only eleven) when she'd heard the phone ring. Now, she knew that most people don't ring other people this late at night, and now she wondered who this 'Hawk' was; it could have been Avery, but she knew that Kaen never called him any nickname, and she also knew that if Avery even considered ringing at this time for anything short of Armageddon, Kaen would rip his arms out and bludgeon him with them.

She couldn't make out what the other guy was saying, unfortunately, but whatever it was, it piqued Kaen's interest. "Oh, he did now did he?" There was a pause; obviously Kaen was listening again. When Kaen spoke again, she could almost _hear_ his grin, "Well, we'll see about that." Another pause, "Don't worry, I'll be there."

A quick peek around the corner showed that Kaen was grabbing his keys, his capsules, and was heading for the door. She heard the roar that indicated he'd left, so she grabbed her own keys and capsules and followed him, making sure to stay out of sight. (Truth be told, Kaen and Kat _flew_ to town, not rode their bikes, but she couldn't exactly tell the 'normals' that.)

--

Kaen shook his head, a grin on his face as he decapsulated his bike upon entering Satan City; did Kat _really_ think he didn't know she was there? I mean, Kami, he'd only spent _four_ years on high alert, it's not like he had a sharpened danger sense or anything... He gunned his bike into life, speeding off to the rendezvous point; he was fashionably late as it was, and, little sister troubles or no, he wouldn't want to keep them waiting any longer.

--

"Where is he Hawk? Where's our fourth?"

The man, known only as Hawk, just looked at the speaker and opened his mouth to reply, when he heard the roar of an engine, and not just any engine. With a grin, he looked in the direction of the noise and replied, "There's our fourth now."

The assembled crowd turned towards the noise, and a handful screamed and ran when they saw the speed the vehicle was travelling at, but stopped when it screeched to a halt, turning a full ninety degrees in it's slide. As the driver climbed off, stowing his helmet, at least a third of the crowd gasped in shock, whispering among themselves such things as "Is that really him?" and "I can't believe he's here."

The rider grinned as he walked over to the others, "'Sup Hawk."

Hawk grinned back as the two shook hands, "What's happenin' Phoenix."

"Not much. Thanks for the call."

Kat watched them carefully from her position in the shadows. So far Kaen hadn't noticed her, but knowing him that could change in a moment if she wasn't careful. Just who were these people, and why was he coming here to meet them? If she didn't know better, from the cars lined up she'd almost say they were gonna race...

One of the three by the cars, a girl around Kaen's age, smiled and called out, "Fancy seeing you here Phoenix."

Looking over at them, Kaen called back, still grinning, "I could say the same for you Falcon." Casting his eyes over the other two, he added, "So, I heard one of you boys was aiming to take the title of 'King of the Road'. Well, sorry to disappoint you, but that title's mine, and I aim to keep it."

"Well then," One of the two men replied, a fairly brutish looking bloke who could probably break Kaen in half (well, if he wasn't super strong, and Saiyan to boot that is), "I guess I'm going to have to crush you first aren't I?"

Raising an eyebrow at the muscled brute, Kaen just shot back sarcastically, "Fe fi fo fum, what beanstalk'd you fall from?"

Several members of the crowd "Oooh!"'ed jeeringly, but they shut up when he cast a glare towards them. "So, you're a comedian are you?" the brute spat, "Well funny man, you won't be laughing when I snap your spine in half!"

'Wow...' Kat thought to herself, 'Seems that guy _is_ as stupid as he looks...'

Before a fight could break out, Hawk stepped between the two, saying, "Whoa guys, time out. Why don't we settle this on the street?"

"That's what I came here for," Kaen replied, still grinning at the brute, "Hey freak, care to make it interesting?"

"I'm game if you are funny man," the guy replied, "What's your wager?"

Kaen reached into his wallet, pulling out a wad of cash, "Two hundred and fifty thousand zenni."

The crowd gasped in shock, but of the racers, Falcon was the first to reply, "It'll be worth a quarter mill to see you kick this guy's ass. I'm in."

The brute and the other racer looked at each other for a moment, before they both nodded, the smaller of the two speaking, apparently for the pair of them, "We're in. Looks like the winner walks away with a cool million to add to the title."

"You're gonna need more than that crotch-rocket to race boy," the brute remarked.

With a grin, Kaen pulled out a capsule from his pocket, returning the bike to its capsule as he replied, "Will this do?" When the smoke cleared, sitting there was a classic 1967 GM GTO, fully decaled. A trio of flaming skulls sat on the bonnet, the flames streaking off towards the back, and behind them sat a bird of fire, wings spread in all their glory.

Kat whistled appreciatively from her position in the shadows, joining the rest of the crowd in their awe of the black beast before them. 'So that's the car dad was working on. Wow... I'm gonna have to ask him to build _me_ one of those...' Her ears pricked up as she heard Hawk call out, "The race starts in ten minutes."

She saw Kaen backing his car into his starting position, and ducked down again when he climbed out. However, it seemed like it was too late, as he grinned and called out, "You can come out Kat." She froze; it was the only thing she could think of doing. 'Maybe if I stay here, he'll think I'm not here...' No such luck; the grin slipped from his face as he called out again, "Come on now, don't make me come and fetch you."

Knowing there was no way to get out of this, she took the cowards way out; she walked out, head bowed, and said, "I'm sorry Kaen, I shouldn't have..." She paused; did she just hear laughter? Looking up, she saw Kaen had a massive grin on his face, so, not thinking, she blurted out, "What's so damn funny?"

Still grinning, he replied, "Did you _really_ think I didn't know you were there? Please. You may be a good thief little sister, but an assassin you're not. I've known you were following me ever since I got that phone call." Seeing the look of shock she knew must have been on her face, he added, "I let you follow me because I have nothing to hide. You want to know why I never told either of you about this? You never asked."

"We shouldn't have to ask!" 'Whoops...' she thought, after she'd already spoken her piece, 'That just kinda slipped out...'

Still grinning, he just shook his head, "Sorry Kat, but as a guy, I'm exercising my right to withhold all information not directly asked for." He threw an arm around her shoulder, "Now come on sis, I've got about 5 minutes to introduce you to the group."

o-o-o

"So, is this the famous Pi we've heard so much about?"

Kaen just shook his head, "Sorry Hawk, not tonight, but knowing how these girls talk, I have no doubt she'll be here with me next week. This is actually my little sister Kat. Kat, say hello to Hawk, Falcon, Eagle, and Condor."

Hawk, the announcer-guy, tipped his hat to her, revealing his brown hair beneath, a grin on his face as he said, "Evening miss."

The guy Kaen had called Eagle stepped forward, hand extended; she noticed he had whitish-blonde hair, which clashed with his tanned skin. As she shook his hand he grinned, "It's nice to meet you. Phoenix's told us a lot about you."

The other guy, Condor, grinned as well, "A cat among the birds huh? Should we be worried?" He was a fairly heavyset man, mostly muscle by the look of things, with mostly black hair, streaked every now and then by white patches.

The girl slapped him on the arm, chastising, "Behave Condor." Smiling, she walked up to Kat and pulled her into a hug, saying, "Finally, there's another girl around here, and a fellow redhead too!" Pulling away, she added, "Love the ears by the way. Are they real?"

Kat paled; in her hurry to keep up with Kaen, she'd forgotten to shift into her 'human' guise, meaning she was still in full Neko appearance, meaning she had cat ears, a tail, and fur on her body. She was just about to attempt to form an explanation when her big brother interrupted, "Yeah, they are. Pretty cool huh?" She was just about to argue when he leaned down, whispering in her ear, "Don't worry, these guys are fine. They already know I'm not human." Straightening up again, Kaen turned to Condor and asked, "Where are the others?"

Condor just shrugged and shook his head, "Oz got stuck workin' in the club, so Harrier and Raptor went to keep 'im company." As Kaen explained later, Oz, short for either Osprey or Ostrich depending on who you asked (Ostrich was a joke they'd come up with to tease him about his size), was Condor's older, adopted, brother, Harrier Oz's girlfriend, and Raptor _her_ brother. The 'club' he mentioned was run by Condor's father Vulture.

Changing the subject, Kaen turned his eyes towards the other racers and asked, "So, what do we know about these two bozos?"

Eagle shrugged, "Not much. Name's Spopovich - the big guy - and Yamu. All we know is that they were runner-ups at the last tournie, but my sources say they're looking to set up shop here in the city to get back at 'fro-man. Under normal circumstances I'd say let 'em, but they're bad for business."

"I'm willing to bet my car they're gonna try something during this race." The others nodded in agreement to Kaen's statement, and he turned to her, throwing her a capsule, "Do me a favour sis. Use Black Panther and tape the race."

She nodded, but the others looked at him in shock, Falcon saying, "How's she gonna do that?"

Kaen just grinned, "Black Panther's built to the specs of Phoenix I, 'cept with more safety features; she breaks easier than I do." Despite this jab, the others seemed to be looking at her far more impressed than they had before. Apparently, as she found out later, anyone who could survive driving _anything_ even _remotely_ like Phoenix I deserved respect, and who was she to argue?

o-o-o

"GO!"

The four cars sped away from the line, tires smoking; Falcon's red convertible, Spopovich's beige hatchback, Yamu's orange sedan, and Kaen's black GTO. Spopo was quick to take the lead, Kaen falling in behind, with Yamu and Falcon behind them. Before they got too far, Kat sped after them on Black Panther; she only intended to ride until she got out of the 'normal's' eyesight, then she'd record the rest from the air and just pass it off as a remote camera.

It looked obvious to her that Kaen was just toying with them; she knew her father, and had no doubt that car, even if built as a street racer, was capable of maxing out at no less than 250 kph. The race went flawlessly for a while, Kaen spending most of it drafting behind Spopo, and Falcon doing the same to Yamu, but around the halfway mark, Kaen's prediction came true.

What looked to her like at least a dozen white cars came in off the side streets and began running interference with Falcon and Kaen's cars, while Spopovich and Yamu sped away. Knowing that most would be after him, what with him holding the title they were after, Kaen sped off down another side street, weaving in and out of the flowing traffic. He came up a crossroads before too long, and she was surprised to see there was a roadblock waiting for him, but a grin graced her features to see him manage to ramp the car up on two wheels and squeeze between them.

Before too long he'd managed to elude all of the white cars chasing him, only to get back on the track and find Falcon ahead of him, still being hassled by the last two. Kat could almost hear him growl as he floored it, speeding up and slamming into the back on one of them, sending him flying off the road and into a street light. Falcon grinned at him, and Kaen nodded his head in the direction of the next turn. Nodding once in turn, the two of them drew up alongside each other, and the three cars turned the corner together. Unfortunately for the last white car, the turn was only large enough for two cars side by side, and he slammed into the barricade.

With the last of the interlopers taken care of, the two cars raced ahead. They were at least four minutes behind the other two, and unfortunately they couldn't use the 'interference' excuse if they lost; what happened on the road stayed on the road. Kaen took the lead, with Falcon drafting behind him; Kaen's car had much better acceleration, so Falcon could leech off the power of his car.

Sure enough, they quickly caught up, much to the shock of the other pair. As soon as they had, they broke off, Kaen going after Spopo and Falcon Yamu, and it was like the interference never happened. All too soon however, the four racers reached the 'special attraction' of this particular course - the drawbridge. Quickly getting an idea, Kaen fell into line directly behind Spopovich, and following his example, Falcon did the same to Yamu. As the bridge drew closer, the 'outsiders' hit the nitrous, racing ahead, but a quick glance from Kaen told Falcon to hold off for a minute.

Just as they were about to start up the slope, Kaen opened up the nitrous fully, and Falcon followed suit. The extra burst of speed sent their cars flying high over the other two, but it wasn't the flight that counted - it was the landing. Spopovich and Yamu landed fairly heavily, content in their victory; the Birds, however, had other plans.

The nitrous burst was enough to send their cars ahead of the other two, but not quite enough to clear them; the two cars slammed rather heavily into the front of the other cars, completely destroying the engine blocks of both, and placing them quite out of the race less than two hundred metres from the finish line. From there it was simple enough; Kaen was the fastest to recover from the landing, and as such was the first to finish, keeping his title.

--End Flashback--

"Spopovich and Yamu huh?" Videl mused, "Yeah, I know those two. Spopovich lost to my father round one in the tournament, and Yamu round three. Guess they took it a little hard... I'll have to keep an eye out if they're trying to bring trouble here."

"Do you know what he did with the money Kat?" Pi asked.

She shook her head, "I asked, and he just grinned and said 'It's a surprise'."

The older girl just growled, "Dammit, he knows I hate surprises..."

The blonde across from her stared at her wide eyed, "Wait, he drops a quarter million on a single race like that, and you're not worried about it?"

Kat looked at her with a confused expression, "No, why should she? We've spent about that on a single shopping spree before."

Pi nodded, adding, "Yeah, besides, it's only, like, a months interest on our account." At the shocked expression of her friends, Pi supplied, "Kaen's had a fair profitable job since he was fifteen, and he's very good at it, so he makes a killing." Kat burst out into laughter.

Videl just shook her head bemusedly. These girls got stranger by the day...

o-o-o

It was now the end of the day, and Kat had been sent to find Gohan; apparently he and Kaen had a sparring match this afternoon. PE had been painfully boring without Kaen around to rile Gohan up into showing off, even if it _was_ hockey they were playing, and their normal physics teacher, having heard that Kaen was absent, actually took the class today.

Kat paused, hearing voices coming from the direction of the boy's change room. Unless she missed her guess, one of them was Gohan. She crept closer, trying to listen in.

Mystery Girl: "I don't care what you say Gohan, you're going to go out with me on a date this weekend, or else I'm going to tell everyone what I saw." (The girl had a trashy, fake-posh voice, but that didn't help Kat narrow down her identity - half the girls in school sounded like that.)

Gohan: "You saw me... Wait, what exactly did you see?"

Kat leaned in, trying to hear her reply, but the girl spoke too soft; she did, however, hear Gohan's response.

Gohan: "Gah... Fine, one date only Angela."

Angela, so that was the girl's name. This was interesting news. In her hurry to rush to Pi and inform her of this juicy gossip, she missed the rest of the conversation.

Angela: "Only one?"

Gohan: "Yes, only one, and we forget the matter, lest _I_ start a rumour about you peeking into the boy's change room, which _your_ story will only collaborate. Deal?"

Angela: "-gulp- Deal."

o-o-o

"There you are Kat. Did you find Gohan?"

"Kinda," Kat replied, racing up to her big sis, "You are _never_ gonna believe what I just overheard! Angela just blackmailed Gohan into going on a date with him _this_ weekend!"

All Pi managed to get out was "Wow!" before their other friends showed up. Sharpner was noticeably absent, but that hardly mattered, as he'd given Pi the money during PE; not even Sharpner was stupid enough to mess with Pi.

"What's this about Gohan?" Erasa asked, her expression epitomising the gossipy blonde stereotype to a 'T'.

Kat suppressed a jump at their approach; in her excitement, she'd forgotten to check for them, and the pair had snuck up on her. Fortunately, they didn't seem to have heard, so Kat answered, "Oh, I just heard Angela asking Gohan out on a date, and him accepting."

Videl felt a heart attack coming; Angela, that preppy, cosmetic addicted slut, had asked _her_ Gohan out, and he ACCEPTED! She almost screamed, but she wasn't sure whether that was because Gohan was going out with Angela, or because she'd just thought of him as _her_ Gohan. 'What do I care? It's not like he's _my_ boyfriend or anything...' she scoffed mentally. Still, that idea was getting more and more tempting every day... 'ARRRGHHH! Not again! I _don't_ like him!'

Kat watched Videl's face with barely veiled amusement; it was obvious the girl was arguing with herself. She was just about to make a comment on it when Gohan showed up, calling out, "Hey girls. Ready to go?" When the pair just nodded, Gohan added, "Hey, I just remembered something. Kaen's not here, so that means you've got one bike between the two of you. Where do _I_ fit into the equation?"

From the smile on Videl's face, it was obvious she was happy about the predicament, but Pi burst that bubble quickly enough, laughing, "Oh that's not a problem. Kaen leant me Phoenix II today; don't worry, I'm a _much_ safer driver than either of those speed freaks, although it may take a little longer to get home."

Gohan laughed, "That's not a problem. I'm not expected home until around 7 anyway."

With that settled, Pi decapsulated the car, and even Videl, a girl who could normally not care less about cars, only barely managed to resist drooling over the beautiful machine that appeared from the smoke. Erasa whistled impressedly, "With a car like that, it's no wonder he's 'King of the Road'..."

Climbing in, Kat just leaned out the window, grinning at the girls as they started to leave, with one final comment: "Oh, that's not the reason. After all, it's the man that makes the car..."

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Wow, this was another one of those chapters that just didn't want to end. And before anyone asks, yes, these characters will be making more than a single appearance, although they will continue to be minor characters.

Also, yes, that racing flashback was inspired/ripped-off from "2 Fast 2 Furious". The movie itself was kinda crap, but the car scenes had some levels of cool.

And here we have the bonus chapter I promised, as celebration of my twenty-second birthday. Just don't expect such quick updates all the time. :)


	11. A Day At The Beach

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 11 - A Day At The Beach

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He took another swing of his drink before setting it back on the table, casting an eye over the men sitting across for him for a moment before saying, "Let me get this straight. You want _me_ to work for _you_?" When the shorter of the two nodded, he snorted contemptuously, "Give me one good reason why I should, and it'd need to be a damn good reason."

The shorter man glared mildly at him, "How about the fact that we grew up together?"

He snorted again, "Sorry, anything our 'friendship' might have gained you ended the day your father kicked me off the planet for being stronger than you."

His companion's glare turned indignant, "Hey, that wasn't the reason at all. He was forced to do it..."

"Yeah, a likely excuse," he interrupted. "Face it, your old man's a bastard, and he couldn't stand the fact there was someone stronger than his heir."

"You know he's dead now, along with our planet."

A dark grin crossed his cold features, "Good, then he got what was coming to him."

The larger of his companions started growling, and the shorter stood up, slamming his hands on the table in anger, "How dare you speak ill of the dead like that!"

He picked up his cigarette from where it lay on the ashtray, taking a deep breath, and letting his companion stew for a moment before releasing the smoke, blowing it into their faces as he replied, "Oh don't blow your stack. If you could hurt me we wouldn't be in this situation and you know it, so sit back down." The man did so, and he cast an eye over the two again as he continued his smoke. Smoking was just one of the habits he picked up when he was exiled; it helped ease the pain of losing Her to bureaucratic red-tape and a poor twist of fate, and his habit had only gotten worse when he received the news that she, and everyone else on the planet, had been killed by 'rogue meteors'. He knew the habit was slowly killing him, but that hardly mattered; in his mind, it wasn't killing him fast enough.

Feeling calmer now, and more in control of his emotions, he looked back at the shorter man and said, "Alright then, what is this mission of such grave importance that you'd spend, what was it, three months, tracking me down?"

The larger man, silent until now, spoke up, "Does this mean you'll help us?"

Inhaling from his cigarette again, he replied, "No, it means I'm willing to hear you out, nothing more."

The larger man stood, slamming his fist on the table and growling, "Why you impudent little..."

The shorter man placed a hand on his companion's wrist, saying, "Easy Nappa, don't waste your breath. Titles never worked on him, and even if they did, it doesn't mean much now that our planet's gone." The large man, Nappa, sat down again, and the shorter man said, "Our mission is simple: kill Frieza, or die trying."

He barked a dry laugh, "Frieza almost completely exterminated our race, and you're _this_ eager to help him succeed? Our race ends with us."

Nappa spoke up again, "Actually, there _are_ two more Saiyans still alive, but neither of them will be of any use to us for this fight; one's a new-born, and one's not much older. Bardock's kids."

He raised an eyebrow, "Bardock had kids? That's news to me..."

"Will you help us or not?" The other man interrupted impatiently, "As loathe as I am to admit it, I doubt we'd be able to succeed without your help, or even if we can _with_ it, but with you on our side we have better odds."

He took one final breath from his cigarette before stubbing it out, grinning as he said, "Alright Vegeta, count me in. I always wanted to die with one final shot at glory, or trying to achieve the impossible, and this looks to be both."

--

He was almost disappointed; this supposed suicide mission had been painfully easy thus far. Even Frieza's prize lackeys Dodoria and Zarbon had been eliminated without him breaking so much as a sweat; Nappa and Vegeta weren't as well off as him, but he hardly cared. The Ginyu Force was en route, but by the time they arrived the mission would be over, one way or the other. All that remained now was the big boss himself.

He kicked open the heavy iron doors, sending them flying across the throne room as the hinges gave way, and the three of them strode in purposefully. There, atop the dais, sat Emperor Lizard himself. Their timing couldn't have been more perfect, as even King Cold himself was absent.

He regarded Frieza with a cold glare and a cruel grin, commenting sarcastically, "Ah, here you are. Your secretary let us in; we're your twelve o'clock." He'd picked up many odd sayings in his five-odd years off world.

Frieza chuckled amusedly, climbing down off his throne, as he slowly strode towards them, "Well, well, well. The last of the monkeys, and the monkey prince himself. You've made quite a mess in my home; such ungrateful guests. I guess it's up to me to teach you some manners." He gave a loud yell, his muscles expanding to the point his armour exploded, before a fist embedded itself into his now-unprotected stomach.

He grinned callously at the lizard, remarking, "Sorry, but I'm not going to stand there and let you power up." He unleashed a flurry of blows, raining ki-coated fists down on every exposed part of Frieza's anatomy; the beautiful part about fighting Aisu in their first form was you could easily tell which points were armoured and which weren't. Purple blood slicked the room, his fists, his clothes, Frieza's body, and after what had to be at least ten minutes of this he stopped, and the lizard stood there dazedly, swaying absently as though still under blows.

He jumped back, raising his hand for the killing blast, but before he could Frieza was engulfed in a red blast of ki, fired from behind him. Spinning around, he almost gaped as he saw the man who'd fired the blast, as evidenced by the smoke still rising from his raised hand.

"I always hated that lizard," the newcomer commented absently. He noticed Vegeta and Nappa's bodies rested at the man's feet, fresh holes through their torso's; he'd been concentrating on his fight with Frieza so fully he never noticed.

He got into his fighting stance, but the exhaustion of the beating he gave Frieza caught up to him, and his opponent could tell, as he made no move to stance up himself. Instead, he just raised his other hand, preparing a stronger blast, and firing. He made no effort to dodge; there wasn't any point. Even if he could dodge, he'd just have another blast thrown his way, and another. Besides, he _wanted_ to die. His last thought was, 'looks like I get my wish', before, in one final blaze of glory, the Saiyan Kapskaen was no more.

o-o-o

He sighed, stretching his limbs to work out the kinks; he was glad to _finally_ be off that airbus. Stupid human contraption. Now, he wasn't claustrophobic mind you - those space pods had a _lot_ less room - but over half an hour trapped in an enclosed space with three dozen teenage Earthers was almost enough to send him into a homicidal rampage. The only thing that had stopped him was the fact he'd spent the trip with Pi leaning against him, holding his arm as she 'looked out the window'.

With another sigh Kaen hoisted his bag onto his shoulder, following his mate. How was it that she'd managed to convince him to tag along again? Ah, that's right, coming here was part of 'making it up to her' for yesterday. She wasn't happy with him when he'd arrived home. The conversation had gone something like this:

--Flashback - Yesterday afternoon (Thursday), around 6:00 pm--

"Kaen, where the hell have you been?"

He groaned; this was the _last_ thing he needed. He'd had a long day, and wanted nothing more than to have a quick shower before dinner, but it seemed that was not to be. Pi wanted answers, and she wanted them now. Dumping his bag against a nearby wall, he turned to his mate and replying, "I was training. I told you I would be." That much was true; his day had ended roughly three hours ago, and he figured he should do some training to create a cover story, even though _technically_ the rest of his day could be considered 'training' too...

She glared at him, hands on her hips in the classic 'angry' stance, "Is that so? Well, if you were training all day, would you care to explain why: a) you weren't home when we got here, and b) the DR computer shows that you haven't used it since late last night?" 'DR' was their little nickname for their training room. Unlike Vegeta's Gravity Room, or GR, their training room had... extra training capabilities, so his father had named it the Danger Room, or DR, after something he'd read in an old Earth comic. Or so he claimed...

He just shrugged, pulling a capsule from his pocket, "I took the portable. I had a couple of things to take care of in the city today, and didn't feel like traipsing back and forth." That, too, was truth, but he wasn't about to tell her what those 'couple of things' were; he'd never live it down.

She narrowed her eyes, "Oooooh, fine. Whatever. You know, a lot happened today, but since you're being such an _ass_ I'm not sure if I should tell you." He just waited; he could see in her eyes that she was dying to tell him. Sure enough, within a few seconds at most her mood did a total 180, "Okay, first thing, Sharp actually showed today, so I got the money off him, plus an extra thousand because he was being a dick. Second, Kat told everyone bar Bitch Boy, and I do mean _everyone_, about your race last night. Third, you missed out on hockey in PE. And lastly, Gohan got blackmailed into going out with Angela on Saturday." A loud, male, groan of annoyance emanated from the lounge room, and she added, "Oh, and Gohan's still waiting here for your spar this afternoon."

He groaned, "Typical. I take _one_ day off and the world collapses in on itself." Raising his voice, he called out, "Hey G-man, mind if we make it tomorrow? I totally forgot about today and worked myself a bit too hard training."

Without so much as turning his head, Gohan called back, "Yeah, no problem. I don't really want to be home tomorrow afternoon anyway; Trunks is gonna be staying over."

Everyone within earshot shuddered a bit at that thought, and before Kaen could continue on his way to his shower Pi turned back to him, a slightly bashful look on her face, "So, you're really tired huh?" He nodded, and she added, while idly running her hand across his chest, "It's just that... you promised you'd finish what you started this morning..."

He pulled her close, whispering huskily into her ear, "What do you think I'm saving my strength for?"

She giggled, but before things could escalate further she playfully poked his nose, saying, "You wanna make it up to me huh? You can start right now." She paused, producing three pieces of paper she 'conveniently' had on her; this smelled like a set-up. "Since we're starting our martial arts unit in PE Monday, they've arranged a field trip tomorrow so we can relax, and, since you are technically our legal guardian, these require _your_ signature."

--End Flashback--

He sighed again; he could never deny her anything, and she knew it, which is why he ended up here. And where was 'here' exactly? The beach, of course; what better way for a group of teenagers to relax than to spend a day amongst the sun, sand, and surf?

He hated it already. He didn't hate _water_ per say; he still bathed, swam, did things normal people did in water. He just hated _salt_ water. The stuff was absolutely useless, it irritated your skin, and you couldn't even drink it; that last fact alone placed it only his list of pet hates, along with spoilt food, and other non-edible edibles.

'Why did I even agree to come here...' He thought to himself. Casting his eye around, he spotted Pi, who'd apparently chosen her spot, begin shedding the outer layers of clothing, namely her top and cut-off shorts, to reveal the form-fitting, deep green one piece swimsuit she had on under. Kaen could feel a smile come across his face, 'Ah, yes. That's why.'

--

She sighed to herself, adjusting her t-shirt as she lay down in the shade on one of the many deck chairs; of all places, why did they _have_ to come to the _beach_? She blamed her father for this. Normally, it would have been impossible for residents of Satan City to go to the beach without travelling a fair distance out of town; the city was landlocked, and the closest thing _resembling_ the ocean was the large lake - or was it an inland sea? - about half an hour to the south-west of town.

Hercule Satan would _not_ stand for that however, and so he commissioned the construction of the 'Super Satan Memorial Park and Inland Beach'; he had _obviously_ come up with the name himself. The place was due to be opened next week, but, being the 'caring father and all around wonderful family man' he was, he'd 'arranged' for the seniors of Orange Star High, which just 'happened' to include her, to be the first to try it out, before it even opened.

She sighed again; typical, he didn't even think about what _she_ wanted, just what would make _him_ look better. She hated beaches. It wasn't that she didn't like swimming; far from it, she absolutely _loved_ to swim. It was the ogling that bothered her. And thus here she was, lying down still with her white overshirt on, over the bathing suit she wore should she want to go swimming.

Lowering her sunglasses a bit, she saw Gohan coming out of the change rooms; it seemed he wasn't one for showing himself off either. Despite what many of her non-fangirl classmates believed, she knew that Gohan had to be somewhat fit; his performance in PE showed as much. And there was something else too, something familiar about his name...

Her train of thought was derailed by the object of her scrutiny himself walking up and calling out, "Hey Videl. What's up with the t-shirt? You're not gonna wear that all day are you?"

Glaring at him, she replied, "What's it to you if I do?"

He raised his hands defensively, "Nothing. Just saying you might tan funny is all."

Pushing her sunnies back up again, she lay back down as she said absently, "I don't intend to get a tan; I burn too easily. I'll just move the chair when the sun gets to be a problem."

Gohan gave her a funny look, "I don't see what the problem is with showing yourself off a bit..."

"I don't 'show myself off' Gohan," she interrupted, snatching off her shades. "Especially not when surrounded by hormone-riddled walking hard-ons."

He smiled down at her, and she could've sworn she felt her heart trying to escape her chest via way of her mouth. "Come on Videl," he cried cheerfully, "live a little. I'm willing to bet you look great under those baggy clothes." She was caught between the urge to pass out and the urge to yell at him; did he just compliment her? What did it matter, he was going out with that slut Angela; he could save his compliments for her. She was about to tell him such when he added, his smile turning into a playful grin, "Tell you what Videl. I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

Her jaw dropped; did innocent, naive little country-boy Gohan just _hit on_ her? Again she didn't have time to reply, as Gohan, obviously taking her silence for acceptance, pulled his shirt over his head and dropped the towel from around his waist, leaving him clad only in a pair of swim trunks, and all cognitive thought shut down. The only thought that could work it way through the fog clouding her mind was 'Holy shit he's hot!' She'd always known he'd have a toned body, but she never quite expected the god that she saw before her.

Some part in the back of her mind had noticed that Kaen had also walked up, and that the two were likewise dressed; while Gohan had on a blue pair of swim trunks, with an ocean print on them, Kaen's were red, with a flame print. That same part of her mind also noticed that Kaen was just as, if not more toned than Gohan, and yet, for some reason, didn't look as god-like to her; once her mind was working again she'd ponder this thought, but until then...

Gohan's voice interrupted her thoughts, "Come on Vid, we had a deal." She noticed, to her mild horror, that her body had started to take her t-shirt off while her mind was still playing catch-up. Quickly halting the action, she turned her attention to the two guys, a mild crimson blush staining her cheeks, and said, "Alright then, but you two have to look away, and no peeking!"

The pair of them rolled their eyes, turning around, and giving Videl a _very_ good view in the process, but she didn't have long to look, as her body once again, as if on auto-pilot, sought to carry out their deal, shucking her t-shirt. However, when the cloth came over her eyes, blinding her to the world around her, she didn't notice the two guys turn back around.

He fought to keep from gaping, he really did, but it was a losing battle; she was a goddess, there was no other way to describe her. He'd always figured that her martial arts training would've given her a tone figure, but he never would've guessed she'd look _this_ good. A quick glance out of the corner of his eye at him companion showed that, while he obviously also thought she looked good, he was a lot more under-whelmed than he himself was, but that was to be expected; he had a mate of his own. Absently, Gohan wondered if, when Kaen looked at Pi, did he see what Gohan saw now?

Her vision clear again now, Videl could see that he and Kaen, especially himself, was looking at her body quite appreciatively; Gohan would've never pictured Videl for the bikini type - even Pi wore a one-piece, but that might have had more to do with not wanting anyone bar her mate to see her body - but sure enough, there was Videl in a red and white two piece swimsuit. Now, as bikini's went it was rather concealing, but that wasn't saying much, and the fact remained that she wore a bikini.

Getting defensive, Videl crossed her arms over her chest, barking, "Hey, I thought I said no peeking!"

Gohan smirked as he felt his Saiyan side taking over. Now, the whole concept of a 'Saiyan side' had been foreign to him right up until around his thirteenth birthday. He'd been training with Vegeta regularly for a while, and had learnt quite a bit about his culture. In particular, he'd learnt that those odd thoughts and feeling's he'd had in the heat of battle were perfectly normal for Saiyans, but not for humans, and he was both, and this conflict had come to a head when puberty hit.

Long story short, his 'Saiyan side' controlled all his instinctual thoughts and feelings, while his 'human side' dealt with logical processes and emotions. He almost thought of it as having split personalities, except both were well aware of what the other was thinking and doing; that, and 'split personalities' had too many negative connotations associated with it.

Accepting the transition from country-boy Gohan to warrior Gohan, he replied, smirk still on his face, "We're not peeking. We're leering." (1)

Videl's jaw dropped in shock again, but before she could comment Kaen spun around, hands raised defensively as he saw Pi approaching, and said, "This man does not represent me!"

Glaring at him, hands on hips, she replied, "Oh really? What were you doing then?"

He opened his mouth to reply, but the words seemed to have left him. Closing it again for a minute, he finally said, "Is there anything I can say that won't get me hurt?"

She grinned, "No, but I'll let it slide for now. Now come on, I need you to put some of this sunscreen on me. I don't want to wind up a lobster."

As she watched the two interact, Videl was almost reconsidering her no-tan idea. Maybe she could get Gohan to put some sunscreen on her; it looked like Pi was enjoying herself. It even looked like Kaen was giving her a back massage as he did so...

She shook her head violently, surprising Gohan a bit; she did _not_ want to think about Gohan's hands coming anywhere _near_ her. Screwing her eyes shut, she tried to block out the thoughts, but the images just came faster and harder until she finally had to admit to herself that she _would_ like to be on the receiving end of that kind of treatment, but, strangely, the only one she could picture her accepting giving it to her was Gohan...

She opened her eyes again, seeing him looking at her curiously; he wanted to know what she was thinking, but there was _no way_ she could tell him without dying of embarrassment. Fortunately for her, Erasa saved her from that fate with her untimely intervention, grabbing her arm and dragging her in the direction of the water, babbling a mile a minute. She vaguely remembered that she still hadn't applied any sunscreen to her pale skin, but the thought faded as the cool water hit her skin.

o-o-o

She dove under the water, swimming like a fish for a while before switching to breaststroke once the water became deep enough; it'd be a while before she needed to come up for air, so for now she was free to enjoy the artificial underwater world. By the looks of things, Herc had spared no expense. It looked just like the real oceans here on Earth, even containing it's own ecosystem down there; it was still fresh, and a little wanting in natural life, but it _was_ only newly finished.

She was glad to get away from prying eyes. She was almost regretting her choice of attire for the day. She wore a fairly small bikini, white instead of her normal black, but not a 'see through when wet' white fortunately; thankfully, she didn't have to worry about getting sunburnt because of her unique genetic make-up. Guys had been leering at her all day, and to be honest, she was getting sick of it; oh sure, she had been extremely flattered at first, but too much of a good thing... She was just glad that her big brother was around to keep the guys away from her.

Her lungs started to burn, and she realised she'd been under too long. She quickly swam to the surface, flicking her wet red hair out of her face as she broke the surface. Looking around, she noticed that in her thoughtful state she'd started to swim back to shore, but not where she'd gone in. She couldn't even _see_ where her friends had set up their stuff. Unfortunately, she wasn't alone.

"Well, what do we have here?" She heard a male voice comment. Turning in the direction of said voice, she saw a group of jocks from school; unless she missed her guess, this particular group were all on the football team, and were all people Kaen had pissed off. Grinning lecherously, the same one that spoke before, obviously their leader, added, "Looks like we've got a perfect opportunity to get back at that short fuckwit by taking a piece outta his sister's ass!"

She froze as two guys she hadn't noticed before grabbed her arms, dragging her back a bit to allow two more to grab her legs; horrible memories of the first time something like this had happened flooded back to her, and, despite being at least 100 times as strong as all of them put together, she couldn't break free of their grip, lost in her own personal nightmare. Fortunately for her, however, someone had noticed her plight.

"Hey, let her go!" A new voice interrupted. Like the voice before it, this one was also male, but she didn't recognize it; her brother hadn't come for her this time. Not yet at least. Ceasing her struggling for a minute, Kat cast an eye over the newcomer; she was sure she didn't know him, but at the same time, there was something familiar about him. His skin was just as fair and unblemished as hers was, an extreme rarity among humans, and he had what looked like sky-blue hair; a rarity among humans, but not unheard of, as Bulma attested to. There was something... off... about his ki though... It was almost as though he _wasn't_ human.

The leader turned to him, growling, "Get lost boy. This doesn't concern you..." His scowl became a grin as he added, "Unless you want a piece too? If so, get in line; I got first dibs."

The blue-haired boy growled, and he sped forward; he moved so fast Kat would've sworn he blurred out of sight, but humans couldn't do that without special training, unless... The lead jock grunted as the blue-haired guy's fist impacted his stomach, but before he could so much as sway this was followed by an uppercut to the jaw, before the coup-de-grace; a kick fairly and squarely between the legs. Seems this kid had no qualms about fighting dirty.

He turned to the four holding her, a glare on his face as he said, "Now for you bastards." Before he could move so much as a muscle, however, the six of them noticed the ground starting to shake, and, turning around, her blue-haired saviour could see a streak of flying sand, which seemed to indicate something moving quickly across the beach. Kat smiled; it seemed that Kaen had found her.

She closed her eyes quickly as the streak of sand approached, and she was glad she did. Within seconds she could feel sand sprayed up onto her face; however, she could also feel the four pairs of arms holding her limbs in place abruptly let go, and heard the distinct splashes of two something's landing in the water, along with the two thuds of two other something's hitting the nearby trees, before she felt another pair of arms hold her by the waist, and a voice saying, "It's alright Kat. You can look now."

She opened her eyes, and flung her arms around him, saying, "I... I was so scared... It happened again... I... I froze..."

He pressed her head against his bare chest, shushing her, "It's okay sis, it's over now." Turning to the blue-haired boy, who stood there gaping at him in shock, Kaen said, "Thanks for your help kid. It's rare to see people willing to stand up for others nowadays. What's your name?"

Reigning in his shock, the boy replied, "Leo. My name's Leo. You're Kaen aren't you?"

He grinned, "That'd be me alright." Turning his attention back to his sister, he added, "Come on Kat. Pi's been worried sick about you."

The two started walking off, Kat still holding onto her brother for support, before a thought hit her and she broke free, quickly jogging a bit back to Leo, and saying bashfully, "Um... Thanks for your help Leo. You're in my class aren't you?"

He looked at her, a shocked expression on his face, "You noticed me?"

She nodded, "I notice everyone, but I noticed you in particular." Noticing Kaen getting impatient, she said quickly, "I'll see you around alright? Maybe we can get a bite to eat sometime, get to know each other under less stressful circumstances?"

He smiled at her, "I'd like that." With that, the two parted ways, Kat heading back with Kaen, and no doubt soon to be on the end of one of Pi's worried tongue-lashings.

o-o-o

"Ow... Ouch, careful there!"

"Sorry, but if you'd hold still it wouldn't hurt so much!" Gohan replied defensively.

Videl sighed as she lay back down, wondering just how she'd gotten into this mess. Like an idiot, she'd forgotten to put sunscreen on, and, like an idiot, she got sunburnt. Fate seemed to have it in for her, as who just happened to have some sunburn cream with them? You guessed it, Gohan. She'd asked why he had it, when it was more than obvious _he_ was never going to get burnt, but he just blushed a bit, shrugged, and said his mother gave it to him, 'just in case.'

Which lead to now, with her lying face down on her deck chair, having Gohan gently rub cream onto her back; ironically, if she'd let him put sunscreen on her earlier, she would've still been in a similar situation, but without the pain, and he was more than happy to point this out to her, saying things like, "You know Videl, it wasn't very smart to go into the water without sunscreen on, especially for someone with skin as fair as yours. If you couldn't do it yourself, you could've always asked me for help."

She grumbled to herself; that was the _last_ thing she needed to hear right now. The feeling of his hands on her back was stirring up feelings she didn't know she had, and the flashbacks she had of seeing the cold, emotionless Kaen lovingly applying cream to his girlfriend's back earlier didn't help her any. Truth be told, the only reason she was in _any_ pain was because said feelings were unnerving her enough to prevent her keeping still; the feeling of Gohan's hands only soothed whatever pain the nerves on her injured back were giving off. She was just glad her front wasn't sunburnt... 'Then again...' She thought with a grin, knowing Gohan wouldn't be able to see the dreamy look on her face, allowing herself, just this once, to indulge herself in her fantasy.

--

Pi smiled to herself as she lay back down, after a few moments of observing Videl's 'plight'. She could see the girl was enjoying herself a lot more than she'd ever admit, and Gohan had quite obviously jumped at the chance to touch her that intimately. The pair of them were so involved that they didn't notice the jealous glares thrown their way, from guys and girls alike, including that preppy Angela Gohan was being forced to go out with tomorrow. To most people, the smile on Gohan's face would look warm, albeit teasing, but Pi could see the truth in his eyes; the smile Gohan wore was a shit-eating grin. It was about time Gohan started acting Saiyan...

She cast an eye at her mate, laying in the sun wearing nothing but his swim trunks, shades, and a smile. He'd been laying there all day (she had never really expected him to go into the water), but she knew that, unlike her, he didn't have to worry about getting sunburnt; _lava_ couldn't burn him. She _did_ notice, however, where his gaze was currently focused; following his obvious line of sight she saw he was checking out a couple of girls playing in the water! Growling, she slammed her elbow into his stomach.

He let out a grunt of surprise before turning to her, lowering his shades down his nose as he asked, "What?"

She glared at him, "I saw where you were looking! You were checking those girls out!"

A grin tugged at the left corner of his mouth as he said, "Hey, just because I'm on a strict diet doesn't mean I can't look at the menu."

Her glare didn't waver, "You keep looking and you might just starve."

His grin didn't waver either, "Come on Pi. Surely you can't be jealous. Why would I settle for a snack when I've already got a banquet? But just because I couldn't be more pleased with my meal if the God's themselves prepared it doesn't mean I don't like to see what else is around."

She fought back a blush fiercely. In his own way, Kaen had essentially called her perfect, but she wasn't going to let him sweet talk his way out of this, so, maintaining her glare, she replied, "Be that as it may, you keep your eyes on your own plate, or it might not be there when you look back." It was a hollow threat, and they both knew it; Pi would never leave him, or him her, but she _could_ make him go without her for a while. On the other hand, that would be too much like punishing herself... "That's twice today I've caught you checking out other girls."

This time his grin did slip, as he donned one of the most serious expressions she'd ever seen on his face. "You're right Pi, and I'm sorry." She almost choked on her tongue; did Kaen just _apologise_, _without_ being under duress? He went on, "I know I shouldn't be looking at other girls anymore..." 'Not that I ever really had a chance to, what with being mated up almost from birth...' he thought to himself, making sure to block the thought from her, before continuing, "... but you shouldn't ever feel jealous; if I look at other girls, it's just that. Looking. Nothing more. We guys are idiots like that."

Pi felt a little bad about guilting him like this; truth be told, she'd actually checked out the odd guy every now and then, even going so far as to size Gohan up, and here she was getting up him for the exact same thing... Before she could voice any of this though, assuming she _meant_ to, he added, "I know I've got a lot to do to make up for it, but I have a good idea where to start. I'm sure by now you know about the money I won?"

She nodded; Kat had told her about that, but she let him continue. "My original plan for it was to take you shopping this weekend, just you and me, but..." Her eyes widened in shock; she could practically _smell_ his sincerity. Kaen was actually _volunteering_ to go shopping with her as a way of making up for his recent minor acts of neglect; she knew that, in his mind, that was like volunteering to have your head cut off for giving someone a raspberry. Wait, she heard a 'but'; but what?

Kaen fought back the urge to chuckle at the look on her face as that registered in her mind, but he carried on regardless, "But, I realised that you'd probably enjoy spending the weekend shopping with your friends instead. So why don't you take the girls out this weekend?" Seeing the mild look of disappointment, at not being able to take him along, warring with the eager look she got about taking the girls out, he added, "If you want, you and I can go next weekend instead."

She smiled broadly, throwing her arms around him in a massive Saiyan hug, "I'd like that. On both counts."

o-o-o

She let out a yawn as she leant her head against the window. The field trip was over, the students back on the buses, and said buses back on their way to the school. Erasa was sitting next to her, talking excitedly about the shopping trip Pi had informed them was happening tomorrow, but, as excited as she'd normally be about a shopping spree, she couldn't get her mind off that new guy she'd met. Leo.

Kat really hoped she _would_ get the chance to spend more time with him. Kaen had informed her, as they were heading back to their stuff, that he had officially placed Leo on the 'Do Not Kill' list after what he'd done to help her; that would quickly change if Leo did anything to hurt her though, but she doubted he would. A smile crossed her lips as she remembered his face. She hadn't felt like this about any guy since... Well, ironically she hadn't felt like this since the _last_ guy who'd stopped someone from raping her; Kaen. She just hoped this wasn't the start of a horrible precedence...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Goddamnit, these chapters just keep getting longer... I probably would've broken it into two, but it just seemed wasteful... Ah well, I 'spose I can deal with longer chapters.

As a side note, this is the first chapter to ever contain a section from every major character's point of view.

(1) This comment comes from a webcomic, located at www(dot)maralith(dot)com (accursed formatting rules...)


	12. Out Of The Frying Pan

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 12 - Out Of The Frying Pan...

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He lowered the spyglass from his eye, and resisted the urge to check his armour again; he was well within his rights to be nervous, but it wouldn't do his troupes any good to see it. To his left, his younger son was easing his sword in and out of it's scabbard, the nocked blade occasionally catching against the edge, and to his left, his daughter sat fiddling with her reigns, her chakram hanging from the belt around her waist. His wife sat her horse behind him, her twin iron rods strapped to her back.

He knew that, elsewhere amongst their troupes, his trusted friend, katana at the ready, sat awaiting the order to charge, along with _his_ wife, her cutlass in hand, and his brother, iron rod and shield at the ready. With them sat their army's strategist, twin swords no doubt primed and ready to draw blood.

It all ended today. Almost three quarters of a year's planning and work all came to a head today. The split in their ranks had been planned from the word go; a wounded bird was less of a threat than a struggling one. Their perceived weakness from the split had allowed the proposed alliance with the Kakarot kingdom easier, but today, that alliance ended. The Avarrdo kingdom would rule above all others, and the kingdom's Kakarot and Vegeta would end before the sun set this day. But all this would not come to pass unless the final piece fell into place today...

His thoughts were interrupted as a messenger ran up to him; he didn't recognize the man, so it wasn't one of his, and yet the deep red armour was theirs, which could only mean... "Excuse me my lord," the messenger wheezed, trying to catch his breath as he delivered his message, "Lord Kaen sent me to inform you that they are on their way, no less than fifty-thousand strong. Their boats will dock at the East beach within the hour."

His youngest son spoke up, "This is good news, right father?"

He sighed defeatedly, "Fifty-thousand is not enough to truly turn the tide in this battle..."

"Excuse me my lord, there's more," the messenger interrupted, "He also wished me to inform you that, along with the two Qiaos, he has allied himself with the mighty General Gohan."

His daughter gaped, as did his wife and son; he wouldn't have been surprised if he himself joined them. "Gohan?" his daughter squeaked out, "High General in the tyrant Hercule's army Gohan? The monster of Hu Lao Gate Gohan? The mightiest warrior in all the land Gohan?"

The messenger bowed his head, "The very same my lady. I have seen him with my own two eyes, and I was there the day the mighty Gohan swore to fight along side Lord Kaen for as long as he drew breath."

Gathering his wits together, he said solemnly, "It seems we may win this day after all. General Gohan himself is worth no less than twenty-thousand men, and with both he and the two Qiaos on their side, those fifty-thousand men with fight with the fervour of a quarter million." Turning to his children, he said, "Oran, Lime, spread the word among our troupes. Lord Kaen returns with Gohan and the two Qiaos behind him."

The two quickly heeled their mounts off, riding down the ranks in opposite directions to spread the news, and he turned to the messenger, "I thank you for this wondrous news, but I must ask a service of you."

The messenger bowed, "As I am Lord Kaen's, I am yours to command."

He smiled, "Then ride to Lord Goku in the south, and inform him that Vegeta shall have reinforcements from the east within the hour. We must strike now if we are to win this day." The messenger smiled in turn and sprinted off, and only then did Avarrdo allow himself to sigh in relief. Fate seemed to smile upon them this day, and if it continued to do so, they would triumph.

--

He climbed onto Shadow Runner, stepping it closer to Hex Mark, his wife Pi's horse. She sat to his right, along with her sister Kat and his oath-brother Korin. Korin's sword was already drawn, and the two Qiaos had their war fans at the ready. To his far left sat Flute, poleaxe across one shoulder, and Viola, rapier drawn and ready, and to his immediate left sat Gohan and Videl, halberd and maces primed respectively. She had barely left his side for a minute since Gohan slew her captor, the tyrant Hercule, but he could understand her fears; his own wife had been a captive of that monster until he and Korin had rescued her and her sister, but reports spoke that Videl had had things worse.

Hefting his tonfa, he turned his gaze towards the beach. He could see troupes in green engaging those in blue, and he smiled as he realised that his father's troupes had left those of Goku and Vegeta to mostly sort themselves out; that meant there was nothing to get in the way. Turning towards Gohan again, he spoke, "You remember the plan?"

Gohan replied, his usually care-free voice showing he'd slipped into battle mode by it's callous tone, "Fear not, Goku's head will be mine before dusk if I have to cut down every soldier on that plain myself." No doubt he would too, if it came to that.

The boat drew closer to the bank, and before the ramp could be lowered an inch Gohan had heeled Red Hare into jumping over, swinging his halberd and shouting, "Fodder! Come and die!" as he tore towards them, cutting everyone in his way down as he charged towards the south. When the ramp was lowered, Videl raced after him, knowing that, unless he waited for her, she had no chance of catching the scarlet horse, but trying anyway. Flute and Viola followed her, but leant more towards the southwest; their job was to ensure Gohan and Videl were not flanked.

He himself heeled Shadow Runner north, Hex Mark falling into step beside him, and Kat and Korin drove northwest, their job the same as Flute and Viola's. Controlling the animal with his knees alone, Kaen leaned in the saddle, swinging his tonfa and shouting, "It ends today!"

--

He swung his blood-drenched halberd around, turning a full 360 as he buried it into the stomach of his next victim. So far, he had slain no less than two thousand men, and found five of the top officers in the Kakarot kingdom, dispatching them with ease; his wife had eliminated three more. He himself had seen an end to the lives of their strategist Tien, the ancient archer Roshi, the barbarian Piccolo, the conniving Yamcha, and the Nanman ruler Gyuu Mao. Videl had dealt with the younglings Dende and Chiaotzu, and the warrior woman Launch. By all reports, only four remained other than the commander himself: his son Goten, his Nanman queen Chichi, and his oath brothers Bardock and Krillin. Where he found them, Goku was sure to be close by.

Before too long, three of them made themselves known to him; Goten, his spear at the ready, Krillin and his serpentine pike, and the God of War himself, Bardock, and his lance. Turning to his wife, he said, "Run. Find the other. I'll deal with these three myself." She looked hesitantly between the three warriors, and her husband, before nodding once and honouring his wishes, racing off; the pair had lost their horses long ago, but Red Hare was a trained warhorse, and he knew the soldiers were in more threat from him than he they.

"Your overconfidence will be your downfall," Bardock commented, swinging his lance around a few times before holding it primed, facing him, but he showed no fear.

Raising his halberd, still dripping with the blood of his fallen enemies, he replied, "If you are so confident, I'll give you your chance." Planting the haft into the dirt, he added, "Attack me if you dare."

With a roar, Goten launched himself at him, Krillin mere seconds behind, but Bardock stood firm, growling at them not to be such fools, but it was too late. When they had reached eight feet away, Gohan had yanked his weapon from the soil, dropping the head towards Krillin like a guillotine and splitting his skull, before ripping the fallen warrior's weapon from his hands and planting it between the ribs of his second attacker.

Freeing his weapon from the skull of his foe, he declared, "Who else seeks death?" He smirked as he saw the barely contained rage on Bardock's face, and taunted, "What's wrong God of War? Afraid to face your fate?" When the warrior stood firm, he growled, "So be it!" and charged him.

Seeing Gohan take the bait, Bardock lunged, stabbing towards him with his lance, but his eyes widened in horror as the superior fighter spun to one side, bringing his weapon to break Bardock's down the centre. Before it could fall, Gohan grabbed the bladed end and continued his spin, planting the blade into his foe before bringing his own weapon around, and cutting his head clear off.

Yanking the fallen warrior's weapon free, he picked up the plea for help from his wife, and bloodlust filled his veins once more; someone _dared_ harm his wife after everything she'd been through! He raced towards her voice, seeing his final target, the great commander Goku himself, about to strike a fatal blow against Videl, and shouted, "Worthless dog! I am your target!" He vaguely noticed the body of Chichi to one side, the caved skull indicating, along with the fresh blood on Videl's mace, what had transpired.

Distracted by the sound, Goku paused, turning slightly towards him, and it was all the opportunity he needed. He threw the halved lance like a spear, catching Goku off guard as the blade pierced his side, but before the man could utter a sound the halberd found it's mark on his neck, and Goku knew no more. The great kingdom of Kakarot was finished.

--

He powered through the masses, knocking enemies aside with every step. So far he'd had to contend with the magicks of Gero of the Android Alliance, along with his three generals: the strategist 18, the battleaxe-wielding 17, and the shield-bearer 16. After dispatching the four of them with help from his wife, he had been intercepted by Vegeta's personal guard: the one-eyed Frost, the axe-wielding demon Nappa, the obese Cold, and Frost's steel-rod swinging brother Frieza. The four of them had caused him some pause, but he eventually managed to turn their attacks against each other. Fortunately, his wife had halted the pair trying to flank him; the poleaxe-carrying Radditz and claw-wielding Trunks were no more.

As the last of the generals fell, save the megalomaniacal ruler's wife herself, he realised he was trapped; no less than a dozen archers had their bows drawn against him. As they fired, his wife stepped in front of him, spinning a shield from her fans, and deflecting the arrows. Ignoring the danger they were still in, she smiled at him, "You should be more careful husband. I'll not have you dying on me."

He flipped over her, spinning his tonfa in perfect timing to deflect the next few arrows, calling back, "I should say the same to you wife," with a grin on his face. The two dropped the banter for long enough to eliminate the archers, and with another grin, the two separated; she had yet to eliminate Bulma, and he had to finish Vegeta off before the man fled from defeat.

His efforts were hampered by the sheet volume of soldiers the man had, but he broke his way through, only to witness the man locked in a power struggle with his wife; he knew she would lose, and when that happened... Rage flooded his veins, and it exploded outward as he shot forward, his speed drastically increased. Vegeta only had enough time to open his eyes in shock before the first of Kaen's blows landed, the tonfa destroying the man's knuckles and forcing him to drop his sword. The second blow repeated this with the other hand, and the blows kept coming, the wood and iron bars slamming again and again into the man's form, his armour destroyed in the onslaught.

With a final cry of rage, Kaen leapt into the air, spinning as he did, and slamming his weapons into the man's face hard enough and often enough to shatter Vegeta's jaw and nose, but the stubborn man just would **not** **fall!** With a final burst of adrenaline, Kaen slammed his left tonfa into his gut, lifting the flame-haired ruler off the ground, and swinging his right in up arc over his head; the reinforced end slammed into the man's head, and it wasn't the weapon that gave way. Adrenaline spent, he moved to pick up his injured wife, and helped her off the battlefield. This fight was over; all that was left was for the dregs to be finished off.

--

He wandered through the body-filled battlefield, his wife hanging from him, as he cast his gaze upon the horror before them. His allies, both new and old, lay strewn about, holes burnt through their chests. The sounds of fighting drew closer, and he saw the shadow of what could only be Gohan fighting a man he could not clearly see with the setting sun. The mighty warrior never stood a chance, as a bar of red light passed through his body, and he slumped to the grass.

"What sorcery is this?" Kaen gasped, and his shock turned to horror as he saw the face of the attacker; his own. The man had an insane smile on his face, covered in the blood of the Avarrdo kingdom; the bodies of his father, mother, and siblings lay at the man's feet, along with Videl's. The man wasted no time on words; within seconds, another bar of light was shooting his way, but he made no effort to dodge, merely holding his wife close for one final embrace. The light passed through first her chest, then his, and with one final smile to each other, the last of the Avarrdo line left this world. They had won the day, they had won the war, and though they lost their lives, they died in each other's arms.

o-o-o

He gazed at his reflection in the mirror, trying in vain to comb his hair into behaving; it was a lost cause, like always, but you couldn't blame him for trying. Behind him, his mother was all smiles, and if he didn't know better, he'd have sworn she had the beginnings of tears in her eyes. He sighed, dropping the comb on the sink, and turned to face her, an exasperated look on his face.

If she noticed, she didn't show it, beaming, "Oh I'm so proud of you! Going on your first date already."

He groaned, "It's not a date mom, it's just..."

"Just what young man?" She obviously wanted an answer, but didn't seem to believe him.

He wanted to scream 'It's a pain in my goddamn arse, that's what!', but he knew that wouldn't go down well; as proud as she may have been about him 'dating', swearing in front of her was still a no-no. Instead, he settled for, "An obligation." He couldn't help the distaste that came up in his voice.

He doubted his mother noticed that either, instead fussing with the collar of his shirt and mumbling, "I still think you should have worn a suit... You look like a ruffian..."

He looked down at his clothes, curious as to how she came to that conclusion. He had on a black shirt, the top couple of buttons undone, and a loose pair of dark blue - almost black - slacks. He assumed his mother just had something against the colour black unless it was the black of one of those horrible penguin suits... "Mom, there's nothing wrong with what I'm wearing. It's what everyone my age wears." 'If you'd left the house for anything in the last eighteen years you'd know...' he thought bitterly, but he knew he was only angry because of Angela. "Besides, I'm not going to dress up for a girl I don't even like."

"If you don't like her, why are you dating her?"

He wanted to tear his hair out in frustration; did she _ever_ listen to him? "Mom, we are _not_ dating. The only reason I'm having _anything_ to do with her is because she's blackmailing me; nothing more. Hell, I'd rather go shopping with Videl and the girls than be with..."

"Wait a minute!" Chichi interrupted, "Who's this 'Videl'? I thought Pi was shopping with her girlfriends?"

'Stupid, stupid, stupid!' he thought to himself, trying to think of a way out of this. All he could come up with was, "She is. Videl's one of them, so they're dragging her along as well."

Her face turned thoughtful, and it was all Gohan could do not to squirm. She was just staring at him as if she was studying a bug under a microscope. Finally, after several agonising, to Gohan, minutes, she spoke up, her voice deadly serious, "You like this Videl girl don't you?"

Gohan flushed; he couldn't help it. How could she know that? He stammered out, "I..No, no I don't like her mom, I..."

"I don't believe you for a second." Glaring at him, she added, "I can't believe you're cheating on your girlfriend with another girl."

He gaped; how did she jump to these conclusions? "MOM! Videl is NOT my girlfriend! I'm not sure she even thinks of me as a friend, or just a tag-a-long Erasa dragged into the group... And after this last week, I doubt I rate very high in her books." Now, Gohan had no way of knowing that, while Kaen's antics infuriated the raven-haired girl, for reasons she couldn't comprehend, she found Gohan's endearing, even when they did the exact same thing, and as such, he was actually _very_ high in her books. "Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if she hates me."

"Oh, no-one could hate you Gohan," Chichi replied, thinking a few seconds before saying, "Videl... Isn't that the girl Kat said got sunburnt?" Gohan opened his mouth to answer, but before he could she went on, "The one you rubbed the sunburn cream on?"

He blushed again, and quickly realising this situation was lost, he muttered a quick, "Gotta go, I'll be late!" and bolted out of the door, taking off to Satan City as fast as his ki could take him.

o-o-o

"Where's Kat?"

She stood up from fixing her boots, picking up her brush and running it through her dark hair for a moment before answering, "She went ahead. Said 'Rasa needed her help draggin' 'Del out, so I told her I'd meet them at the mall."

"You look amazing."

She gazed at her reflection, examining her choice of clothing. She wore a fairly loose, sleeveless black top, and a deep green skirt, along with a pair of clip-on black boots; the idea was to wear clothes easily gotten out of, with all the clothes she knew she'd have to try on today. In all honesty, she didn't think she looked that good, but she also knew she could have worn a trash bag and received the same compliments. A smile on her face, she replied, "You're biased."

He smiled back, but as she couldn't see his face, the gesture was lost. She could hear it in his voice, however, as he replied, "Am not. Just because I think you're the most beautiful woman in the galaxy does not make me biased."

She just laughed, before turning to face him, and her breath caught in her throat; all he wore was a red singlet and a black pair of spandex shorts, and the sheen on his exposed chest, plus the towel around his shoulders, showed he'd just been training. Even after all the time they'd spent together, and all the days she'd seen him like this, he still took her breath away, each and every time. She was half tempted to throw him onto the table and have a little... 'fun', but she resisted; he would still be here when she got back, and anticipation would make it better. Instead, she just said, "So, what're your plans for the day?"

He shrugged, "Just grabbing a quick snack before getting back to it."

She smiled again, before giving him a quick hug (making sure not to get his sweat on her), a quick kiss, and a quick "Bye" before grabbing her stuff and blasting off to the city. If she hadn't been in such a hurry to go shopping, and hadn't been distracted by his, in her opinion, magnetically sexy appearance, she might have noticed the lie in his voice.

Kaen waited twenty minutes, to make sure she wouldn't be able to sense him clearly, before grabbing his mobile and dialling. The person on the other end barely had time to say "Hello" when he said, "It's on. I'll be there in twenty," and hung up. Quickly changing into some decent clothes, he grabbed his own stuff and also took off in the direction of Satan City. He had his own agenda for the day.

o-o-o

"Thanks again Saiyaman."

He smiled and waved as he started to fly off, replying, "All in a days work citizen." One he was far enough away, he IT'd into the bathroom stall he'd locked, emerging as Gohan again. Sometimes he felt like a real idiot when he wore that costume, especially with that fake voice he had to continually don, but he was trapped now. And besides, the more different 'Saiyaman' was from 'Gohan' the better.

Once he got back to his table, Angela pounced on him, "What took you so long Gohan? You missed Saiyaman."

He rolled his eyes, replying sarcastically, "Oh dear, how ever will I go on knowing I missed seeing Satan City's caped crusader in action?" The diner they currently sat inside was the first stop on their 'date'; frankly, Gohan was glad he ate before he left. The food here was ridiculously overpriced, and tasted like a combination between Bulma's and Roshi's cooking; that is to say, a fusion of cardboard and toxic waste. 'Probably something to do with it being 'healthy' food...' he thought to himself. The diner was supposedly very popular with people eager for healthy fast food, but to be honest Gohan would have preferred a greasy steak any day of the week; then again, Saiyans _were_ mainly carnivores.

Being the gentleman he was, he paid for her meal and offered his arm to help her get up, and she latched on like a leech. He'd been forced to become Saiyaman when some idiot thought it'd be a good idea to rob the joint, as a lot of preppy rich kids favoured the place; kinda like the one hanging from his arm as if he'd disappear if she let go for a second. 'Then again...' he thought to himself, 'If I wasn't so nice, I probably would.'

The girl babbled on about... something, for the twenty minutes or so it took for them to walk to their next destination, the Satan City Megaplex Cinema, and Gohan wished he'd brought ear plugs; he'd thought a sugar-high Goten was bad, but at least you could - well, Gohan could - still understand most of the words. All Gohan managed to pick up from the drivel that came out of her mouth was the name of the movie he was being dragged to see: "Titanic, the Director's Cut." Oh goody...

o-o-o

"So when are you gonna tell her man?"

Kaen paused a minute to look at the speaker, "When I can do it without dying of embarrassment, that's when. I've told you this before Hawk."

Hawk just shook his head, his brown ponytail swinging slightly as he did, before saying, "Whatever man. All I'm sayin' is the longer you wait, the more pissed she'll be when you finally tell her. Not like I know or anything, I've only had at least a dozen girlfriends..."

Kaen snorted, returning his attention to the task at hand; tuning his guitar. "Puh-lease. I've been with Pi since before you were born Hawk. Hell, I've been with her since Vulture was in primary school, and hitting the girl you liked was normal. I think I know how she thinks. 'Sides, I've kept much worse things from her than 'I'm in a band', and she ain't left yet; just makes the make-up sex better."

"Argh, too much information!" Eagle cried out, clapping his hands over his ears, and, in turn, dropping his bass guitar; fortunately, he was on the couch at the time, so it just fell against the cushions. Condor pretended not to hear the conversation, instead tooling around with his drumsticks.

Hawk just grinned at him in agreement; he may not have ever met Pi, or knew anything about her Kaen hadn't specifically told them, but he knew one thing if he knew anything - make-up sex _was_ great.

Finishing up, Kaen slung his guitar strap over his shoulder, saying, "Alright then, let's get back to it."

Picking up his own guitar, Hawk commented, "You know that, even if we get this right, we can't play it tomorrow night don't you? The weekend crowd like what they like, and don't like new things."

He just nodded, "I know, but the sooner we get 'Cold' down, the sooner we can start something else."

--

She paused, looking into the window of 'Victoria's Secret'; that new line looked quite nice. Idly, Pi thought to herself, 'I wonder what I'd look like in that...' No sooner had this thought run it's course when a mental picture of said thought appeared in her mind's eye; she had a _very_ good imagination to go with her Saiyan photographic memory. Now, what she _didn't_ know, is that her idle thought had actually also considered what _Kaen_ would think of her wearing those, and that, by mentioning him, she'd accidentally passed the image on to her mate.

--

"Holy shit man! What happened?"

Once his eyes focused on the real world again, Kaen examined the damage; in his moment of distraction, he'd managed to destroy all six guitar strings, which was no mean feat, as the strings were brand new, just replaced mere hours ago today. Placing his guitar down gently, lest he cause it any more damage, he walked over to his bag, pulling out another box of strings, and a metal band, the latter of which he strapped around his wrist.

Walking back, he replied, "Remember how I told you about Pi and my mental link?" He waited for the three of them to nod, including Eagle, the original speaker. "Well, she's not as good at guarding her thoughts as I am, and it seems she was imaging herself in some new lingerie when she slipped."

Their eyes widened as they caught on instantly, "OOOOOH"ing together. Speaking again, Eagle asked, "So was she hot?"

Glaring at him mildly, for him at least, Kaen replied, "She's always hot. However..." His eyes glazed again for a moment as he added, "She _did_ look hotter than normal. A _lot_ hotter."

"So what's with the armband?" Condor asked, from his position behind the drum kit.

"Ki suppressor. Blocks most of my strength." He replied, picking up his guitar to begin restringing it - again - and adding, "To prevent any more damage to my baby than necessary."

o-o-o

Pi blushed to herself when she felt Kaen's reply; she was slightly mortified that she'd been so lax as to send over that image, but the fact he'd tripped in his training, as his replying thoughts showed, proved that he liked what he saw, and getting positive feedback was always good. She was still blushing a bit when she emerged from the store ten minutes later, a new purchase added to her list.

Noticing her Kat cried out, "Pi, what's wrong? You look embarrassed about something."

So as not to inform the humans of things they shouldn't know, Pi replied in Saiyan, **"I was imagining myself in some lingerie, and accidentally showed Kaen..."**

Kat gasped, covering her mouth with her hands as she restrained giggles, "You didn't!"

She nodded, giggling a little herself as, embarrassment forgotten, she added, **"Yup. He tripped and hurt himself when he saw it."**

Videl scowled to herself. First Erasa and Kat had shown up at her house at an ungodly hour (ten o'clock, but ungodly none-the-less for a Saturday) and dragged her out, literally; that Kat was stronger than she looked... Then, the police had called her up to a robbery at some health food diner, but before she'd gotten twenty feet they'd called back and said "Never mind." Apparently Saiyaman had shown up. Now those two were talking about _something_ in that bizarre language of theirs. Needless to say, Videl was quite annoyed.

The only saving grace of the day was that they weren't going to all the girly-girl stores Erasa loved; oh sure, they'd visited a few of those, but the majority of the stores were clothes that she, herself, actually liked. Not that she liked shopping of course...

When she'd voiced this thought to the dark-haired shopping demon, Pi had just laughed and replied, "I had a friend like you a while ago Videl, one who had never been shopping before in her life until Kat and I took her. An hour and a half later, two hours tops, and she was just as eager as we were." Videl had to bite her tongue to refrain from replying 'She probably left to get away from you,' but she knew that wasn't a fair comment. As loathe as she was to admit it, she _was_ starting to enjoy herself.

The sound of shattering glass drew her attention, followed by the sound of an approaching car engine. She quickly ran to the edge of the balcony, casting her eyes over the floor below, and finding the culprit; ram-raiders, driving through the mall. Lifting a leg onto the railing, she began working out just _when_ to jump to make sure she landed on their car. She needn't have bothered.

A green, red, and black blur fell through the skylight, landing soundly on the bonnet of their car, and crushing the engine block; apparently, Saiyaman wasn't in a subtle mood today. He quickly dispatched the would-be thieves and left again; Videl knew the police were on their way - her radio-watch said as much - but she'd never seen Saiyaman be so... abrupt...

Before she could ponder the issue any further, that preppy slut Angela ran up - alone - and asked Erasa, "Have you seen Gohan? He was with me a minute ago, then mumbled something about needing to use the bathroom and ran off." Videl snorted to herself; the bathroom? Right. Surely she didn't believe _that_ excuse. The next bit of information intrigued her, as Angela added, "He did the same thing at the diner. That's twice now he's missed seeing Saiyaman."

Videl couldn't help chuckling to herself. 'Well now Mr. Son. Either you have a very bad case of coincidental bad timing, or it looks like I've found the man behind the mask.' The man in question himself walked up moments later, and she was more than a little surprised when, instead of addressing the girl he was supposedly going out with, he walked up to her and said, "Hey Videl, having fun? I know the girls can be a little full-on at times, but still..."

For some reason she couldn't fathom, she didn't want to lie to him, so she replied guiltily, "Actually, I _am_ having fun. I mean, I was reluctant at first, but it's impossible to stay that way around those two. It's like they're infected with a highly-contagious shopping virus..."

Gohan burst out laughing; yeah, that sounded like those girls all right. Surprising even herself, Videl joined him in laughter. There was just... something... about being in Gohan's company that made everything alright with the world. Angela, however, had had quite enough of Gohan and Videl's continued flirting; she doubted that either of them were even aware of it, but while Gohan may not have been her boyfriend, he _was_ with her today, and she would _not_ stand for it, so, grabbing his arm, she batted her eyelashes at him and said in a sickly sweet voice, "Gohan, would you be a gentleman and walk me home?"

He shared a quick look with Videl, one that read 'Yeah, like I have a choice,' before reluctantly saying, "I guess so..." Angela smiled predatorily at him, glaring for a moment at Videl, before dragging the half Saiyan off.

o-o-o

The guys put their instruments down as the door to the practice room burst open, revealing an out-of-breath Falcon. Moving towards his girlfriend, Hawk asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"

The beginnings of tears in her eyes, she replied, "The Satan Sports Emporium; it's on fire! I just heard that Faile's trapped inside!"

The words had barely left her mouth when Kaen took off running, sprinting as fast as he could; the ki suppressor may have nerfed his abilities, but he was still a Saiyan, and it couldn't do anything about his naturally increased cell density, thus his fastest sprint was still easily enough to leave him a blur and a trail of dust to the untrained eye. 'Of all the days for there to be a fire, it _had_ to be the day I put this thing on...' he thought to himself bitterly. Ki suppressors were designed such that the wearer couldn't remove them him or herself – after all, they were designed to be placed on prisoners to make them easier to handle - and he didn't have enough time to explain to the guys how to take it off, so he did the next best thing; his Rage Pyre technique. He also pressed the button on the watch his father had given him, and, in a similar fashion to Gohan's Saiyaman watch, it provided him with a disguise. However, instead of using capsule tech, it used nanotech; same result, different means.

Quickly arriving at the scene in his new outfit - an exact remake of his old Phoenix armour - Kaen took stock of the situation. There were three kids huddled together on the fourth floor, and at least half a dozen or so on the sixth; or was it seventh? In his current state, he had no where near enough power to snuff out the flames completely, but he did the next best thing; concentrating slightly, he made sure the flames would spread no further.

"Dammit," he muttered to himself, "She's one of the ones on the fourth floor, but if I rescue her, I'm dooming the other six... There's just no way I can get them all in my current state..." A familiar, and extremely welcome, green-clad figure landed beside him, and, sighing in relief, he said, "Perfect timing. There's three kids trapped on the fourth floor, and another six on the sixth or seventh floor; it's hard to tell from here. I'll go in through the front and grab the three, you'll have to head to the roof and get the six; after all, I can't fly." He pointedly indicated the metal band still around his wrist; his nanotech suit formed itself _under_ the band.

'Saiyaman's' eyes opened slightly as the pieces fell into place, and he said, "Uh... 'Phoenix'? What are you going here?"

'Phoenix' just growled, "Talk later. Rescue now." Saiyaman opened his mouth again, but before he could say anything he added, "And I've done all I can about the flames. Now GO!" Saying this, he ran forward and kicked open the door, ducking back a bit out of reflex as the flames shot up out of the doorway. Taking his cue, Saiyaman flew up to the roof, erecting a ki aura around him to protect himself from smoke as he dove in through the window on the top floor.

Falcon and the gang arrived at the SSE just in time to see Phoenix - or they assumed it was him anyway, but since when was he a redhead? - hold his hands in front of him like he was praying, then throw them open, and the wall of flames in the doorway drew back like a curtain. Wasting no more time, he raced inside, but as Falcon ran up, the flames closed in behind him again. The last she saw of him was when he ran through a doorway, and a pile of flaming rubble landed behind him. Fear filled her heart as he faded into the fire and smoke, and she did the only thing she could; she shouted in fear.

"PHOENIX!"

To be continued...

-Omake-

Gohan paced back and forth across the tiled floor of the cinema bathroom. No matter how he looked at it, it seemed he was stuck seeing that shite movie. Unless...

With a grin, Gohan stopped pacing, focusing his energy a bit before saying, "Split Form!" A second Gohan 'slid' out of him, before solidifying. Turning to his copy, Gohan said, "Alright, you're going to go with Angela, and I'm going to find something better to do." In his haste, he forgot that, when the two reintegrated, he'd get the memories of sitting through the movie anyway.

His double, however, has other ideas, replying, "Oh hell no! You go."

With a sigh, Gohan commented, "There's only one way to settle this..."

--

The door to the bathroom swung open, and the guy walking in abruptly froze at the sight before him: some guy in black holding another guy in black in a headlock, and both guys looked the exact same. Swallowing nervously, the man asked, "Uh, what are you doing?"

The man holding the headlock replied, "I'm kicking my ass, DO YOU MIND?"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's notes:

I got so side-tracked working on something else I almost forgot I was due to upload another chapter today (where I am, right now, it's 11:23 PM). I am willing to admit that the idea of Kaen being in a band came from another story I'd read called Low Man's Lyric (and if you've been keeping track of Gohan x Videl fics for the past few years, no doubt you've seen it) so all props go to the author of that, whose name I can't remember...

You'll note I used the bold text to indicate Saiyan speech instead of Al Bhed this time. This was done because, contextually, the people around the speaker are meant to understand; the words are, after all, spoken to Kat, who speaks Saiyan.

Another quick comment: while it should be pretty obvious, can anyone guess which movie the Omake is based upon?

Now, for those who didn't pick up on it, which, admittedly, may be all of you, the opening scene, which I probably put far too much effort into, was inspired by the game based on the Chinese legend 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' called Dynasty Warriors. For those of you who don't own it, go out, buy it, and start killing things. Now. For those who do, here's a list of which DBZ character, or original character, was which DW character:

-Kakarot Kingdom-  
Zhao Yun – Goten  
Guan Yu – Bardock  
Zhang Fei – Krillin  
Zhuge Liang – Tien  
Liu Bei – Goku  
Ma Chao – Dende  
Huang Zhong – Muten Roshi  
Jiang Wei – Chiaotzu  
Wei Yan – Piccolo  
Pang Tong – Yamcha  
Yue Ying – Launch  
Meng Huo - Ox King  
Zhu Rong – Chichi

-Vegeta Kingdom-  
Xiahou Dun – Frost  
Dian Wei – Nappa  
Xu Zhu – King Cold  
Cao Cao – Vegeta  
Xiahou Yuan – Frieza  
Zhang Liao – Radditz  
Sima Yi – 18  
Xu Huang – 17  
Zhang He – Trunks  
Zhen Ji – Bulma  
Cao Ren – 16  
Zhang Jiao – Dr. Gero

-Avarrdo Kingdom-  
Lu Xun – Avery  
Taishi Ci – April  
Sun Shang Xiang – Lime  
Sun Jian – Avarrdo  
Sun Quan – Oran  
Gan Ning – Raene  
Huang Gai – Truniz  
Zhou Tai – Kellre  
Sun Ce – Kaen  
Da Qiao – Pi  
Xiao Qiao – Kat  
Zhou Yu – Korin  
Lu Bu – Gohan  
Diao Chan – Videl  
Nu Wa – Viola  
Lu Meng – Flute

-Deceased-  
Dong Zhuo – Hercule


	13. And Into The Fire

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 13 - ...And Into The Fire

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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"As you can see from these graphs your Excellency, if we were to..."

He tuned him out, yawning widely as the... - what was he again? Scientist? Surveyor? Negotiator? - Whatever he was, rambled on, reading from his report; he noticed that not once was the man game enough to look him in the eyes. Suddenly incredibly angry, he slammed his fist down on the arm of his throne, hard enough to leave another massive dent the servants would ding out, and causing the man to fling his papers in the air in his fear.

His tail lashing about under his cape, he growled lowly, "I have had a _long_ day, so if you don't mind, GET TO THE BLOODY POINT!" The man jumped again - by the smell of things, the man had also soiled himself - but before the man could stammer his apology, he went on, "I didn't send you there for a geological survey; we already know what's there. What I sent you there for, and what I want to hear from you now, is whether or not it is viable to form a treaty with the people of Chikyuu-Sei to allow us to mine the planet."

Visibly sweating, the man stammered out, "I... I believe it would Excellency, and... and while the planet is, overall, fairly low-tech, they do have some technology which may be useful to..."

"Thank you," he cut the man off, "That will be all. If I want your full report, I'll look up the file myself."

The man quickly gave a deep, jerky bow, saying, "As you wish Excellency," before leaving as quickly as he could; he may have been known as a reasonable, just ruler, but it was more widely known that, when he was in a bad mood, you became like shadow if you wanted to avoid his ire.

As the man walked, the doorman walked in, pausing just inside the wide iron doors and announcing, "King Vegeta is here as you requested Emperor."

"Finally," he muttered, raising his voice and calling back, "Send him in."

The doorman bowed, exiting again quickly and ushering the Saiyan king inside. Vegeta walked up to the dais, head held high, but in true formal fashion he knelt a foot from it, greeting his emperor, "I thank you for your audience Emperor Kapskaen. I came as fast as I could."

Sighing, Kaen replied, "Vegeta, I didn't summon you here to kiss my ass; I've got enough people on hand for that. Now, I have just had to sit through almost four straight hours of reports, so what's say we cut the shit and get right to the point. How goes the hunt for the last dissidents?"

Standing, Vegeta grinned, "The last of the rebellion was crushed the day before last; I saw to it personally. I assure you Kaen, the Cold Rebellion is no more. We will, however, keep our eyes open just in case." Kaen sighed in relief; that rebellion had been like a swarm of cockroaches, surviving everything. They'd even cut off the head, capturing the leader of the rebellion, one Frieza Ice, but the man's father had kept the rebellion alive with the belief that their fearless leader would return to lead them again.

Kaen grinned as the memory came back to him. The Avarrdo Empire, known to most as simply The Empire, had been in power for no less than fifty years, under his father's rule. Normally, the eldest son would have been the one to take the throne, but Korin had been assassinated when he was four in Saiyan years, so Kaen had been placed in charge. This had angered the Aisu-Jin, who believed him unfit to rule, and thus the Cold Rebellion was born. And thanks to the efforts of his vizier Frost, Frieza's half-brother, they had captured Frieza six months ago; Frost had turned against his own people for the good of The Empire, and had been rewarded greatly for his loyalty.

"Thank you for this good news Vegeta. Now, if there's nothing else you wish to report, I think we both have other places to be." Vegeta nodded, bowing once before walking off, no doubt to spend time with his family; Vegeta had yet to groom his son, Vegeta LV, to take his place. The Saiyan people as a whole were the guardians of The Empire, a job they revelled in.

He stood up, starting to walk off, but before he got very far his vizier called out, "Um, I don't wish to upset you further sir, but there are still maybe two dozen petitioners waiting outside for an audience."

Whipping around, he declared, "You know what Frost? YOU deal with them. _I_ am going to spend some time with my family, and until I get back, YOU are in charge. Clear?"

Frost just gulped, replying, "Crystal," and with another sigh, Kaen walked off - through the rear exit into his private chambers - intent on finding his mate and his children; technically, they were his siblings, not his children, but with their parents death, he had adopted the twins.

He found Pi lounging by the pool, spread out in all her glory on one of the deck chairs in a two-piece, and he sidled up behind her, wrapping his arms around her from behind when she sat up a bit. She gasped a bit, saying, "Are you done already?"

"I took the rest of the day off." Kissing her throat, he whispered into her ear, "So, where are the kids?"

Fighting back a moan, she replied, "They're at their lessons; they won't be back for a couple of hours."

Grinning slightly, he nipped playfully at the bite mark near her left shoulder, permanently marking her as his, as he said, "So, we've got some time to ourselves for a while huh?"

"I'm afraid not." A new voice interjected, surprising the both of them; it sounded a lot like his own voice, but there was, for lack of a better word, an echo in it, as if there were many of him speaking at once in almost-perfect synch. The stranger chuckled as he said, "Then again, seeing as how the both of you have a whole ten seconds left to live, I suppose you'll soon have all the time together you want."

Jumping to his feet, he pushed his mate behind him as he dropped into stance, refusing to let his shock show at seeing his opponent's face; his face, stained with blood. Fortunately, it looked like old blood, dried, so it hadn't come from anyone on _this_ planet. Steeling himself, he demanded, "What do you want doppelganger?"

The man chuckled again, saying mockingly, "Why, I didn't know you knew my name." His chuckle became a full blown laugh, with undertones of growing insanity, as he declared, "I have everything I want right here." Throwing his hands back over his head, and forming a massive blast, an insane grin came across his face as he cried, "All I want is YOU!"

Kaen and Pi just closed their eyes, awaiting the end; there was no way they could dodge that blast, and even if they could, there would just be another, larger, blast following on the heels of this one. As the end came, his last thought was not about his own safety, or the safety of his mate. Nor was it anything to with the stability of his empire; Frost was in charge, at least until such point as Oran and Lime became of age. No, his last thought before Death came for him was, 'I hope the kids will be fine without us.'

o-o-o

"Hey, what are you doing here?"

He spun around, finding himself face-to-face with the sparkling yellow eyes of the girl that had been on his mind since yesterday. A grin splitting his face, he replied, "Hey Kat. Not much really, just hanging around 'til I've got to pick the twins up from their lesson."

Her head tilted to one side in a curious-yet-confused gesture, she asked, "Twins?"

He slapped his forehead, "Oh, right. You don't know. My younger brother and sister, Vincent and Gina."

Smiling, she cried, "No way! You've got twin siblings too? I've got a little brother and sister as well; Oran and Lime. How old are yours? Mine are nine. And what lesson?"

He grinned, "Seven, going on eight. I'm a twin myself actually. Aeris goes to our school, but they put her in a different form class; she has different interests to me. And they're having a martial arts lesson up the road at the 'Satan Sports Emporium'. I may not like the man, but he _is_ a decent enough fighter."

Kat's eyes lit up, "You guys do martial arts too?"

Leo nodded, "Yeah. Mom insisted we all learn how to protect ourselves, just in case. I do kick boxing actually." He caught something he'd missed the first time in her reply, "Wait, _you_ do martial arts? But you're so... feminine."

Kat mock-glared, "I take offence to that. I'm a true warrior." Grinning, she added, "Kaen's teaching all of us. I've been learning since I was 13, and Pi since she was 3. The twins didn't really start training 'til they were 5."

"How come you started so late?"

Grimacing a little, she replied, "Well, I was never really into fighting, but after an... incident... when I was 13, I started training."

Sensing she was reluctant to talk about that 'incident' any further, Leo changed the subject, asking, "So, what're you doing here?"

Kat pointed over her shoulder, to where Pi, Erasa and Videl still stood, "I'm shopping with the girls, and spending a whole bunch of money Kaen gave us."

He looked a little disappointed as he caught the eagerness in her voice, so he muttered, "Oh... Well, I don't want to intrude..." and started to move off.

Kat quickly cast a look at her big sister, who mouthed 'Go for it!', so she spun back around again, catching Leo's arm as she blurted out, "Would you like to come with us?" Blushing slightly at how blunt she'd been, she added, "I mean, I'd really like to hang out with you for a while longer, get to know you some more. Plus, it's always nice to have a guy around to help out, with a second opinion and whatnot..."

His eyes drifted to the other three for a little while before he dragged them back, saying uneasily, "Well... I don't know..."

Seeing his hesitance, Kat broke out her secret weapon; the irises of her eyes enlarged until they filled her eyes entirely, and her eyes even seemed to crowd out the rest of her features. Her eyes seemed to shimmer a bit, as she pleaded, "Won't you please come with us?"

Leo felt his willpower melting away under The Look, and without thinking, he said, "I thought only my sisters could do that..."

She sniffed, the hint of tears forming in her eyes as she said sadly, "Don't you want to spend time with me..."

The rest of his resolve shattered like a pane of glass with a cinderblock thrown through it as he instantly replied, "Of course I want to spend more time with you. I'd love to come with you guys."

Instantly, The Look vanished, and Kat was back to her cheerful self, chirping, "Awesome! Well, come on, let's go!" As she grabbed hold of his arm, Leo could almost feel the bar of the mousetrap slam into his back...

o-o-o

Red eyes cast about, looking around for a way up to the next floor. The main staircase had collapsed in front of him, and behind him, trapping him on the second floor; two floors lower than he needed to be. 'If I could fly, this wouldn't be a problem...' he thought bitterly, looking for something, anything, that lead upstairs. A pommel horse caught his eye, and an idea quickly came to him.

Focusing his energy for longer than he'd normally have to, he fired a blast towards the ceiling above the gym equipment; they just _had_ to have high ceilings didn't they? Getting a run up, Kaen fed the gathered energy into his limbs, increasing his momentum as he sprinted towards the pommel horse, using it as a stepping-stone to leap up to the hole he made. Catching the edge, he pulled himself up, and began looking for a way to repeat that with the next floor...

--

A blue beam of energy blasted out of a seventh story window; the time for being subtle had passed. A child under each arm, Saiyaman, a.k.a. Gohan, flew gracefully out the new hole, carefully setting the children a safe distance away from the burning building. He was just about to head back in when a redhead girl ran up to him, nearly hysteric, crying, "Saiyaman, you've got to find them. My little sister's still trapped inside, and Phoenix hasn't come out yet..."

Shocked, Gohan said, "You know Phoenix?"

Seemingly as surprised as him, the girl asked back, "Wait, _you_ know Phoenix?"

'Gah, stupid, stupid, stupid! That's the second time today I've put my foot in it!' Thinking quickly, he replied, "Yeah, we've worked together sometimes." Returning to 'hero mode', he added, "Look, I've got to get the others; there's still four kids trapped on the seventh. You said Phoenix went in to rescue your sister? Then he will, just believe. Trust me. Trust HIM. I've got to go." Wasting no time, he blasted off again, flying back through the hole he made. He'd question how the girl knew Kaen later.

o-o-o

Blue eyes cast from side to side as she weighed up the situation. 'All right, Pi and Erasa are deeper into the store, and Kat's too busy with that Leo guy. Now's my chance to get out of here...' She started, slowly, to walk out of the store, but paused when something caught her eye. Walking up to it, she ran her hands across it, getting a feel for it; it was just a fairly simple t-shirt, a little more form fitting than she'd normally wear, but it was a nice royal blue, and made of a very soft, yet from the feel of it sturdy material.

Unbidden, the thought 'I wonder if Gohan'd like that...' wormed it's way into her mind. On autopilot, she took the shirt off the rack, looking around for anything that might appeal to her crush; the more time she spent thinking about it, the more she accepted that she might like the dark haired boy, but for now it was purely a crush in her mind, and _nothing_ more. His kind, smiling face appeared in her mind's eye, and she felt her cheeks growing hot against her will.

Shaking her head to clear away her pleasant, but unwanted thoughts, she bit her lip unconsciously as she looked around, to see if the coast was clear. Seeing no eyes upon her, she quickly headed into the change rooms to try on the small collection she had.

Pi smiled to herself as she felt Videl's ki entering the change stall; it seemed the girl was finally getting into it. She was more stubborn than Viola! It was kinda sad that the female of a formerly believed asexual species was, or had been at least, more feminine than Videl when it came to shopping, but she was getting there. Looking over at Kat, she was the younger girl grinning at her and giving her a thumbs-up; obviously, she noticed too.

Walking past the booth the raven-haired girl was using with her own pile of try-ons, Pi called out, "Nice to see you're finally getting into the spirit 'Del!"

Inside the booth, Videl looked at the wooden door, confused at the situation; it's not like she could see through it, and she _knew_ no-one saw her come in, so how did she know... Raising her voice, she called out, "How did you know I was in here?"

She could practically see her friend smile as she replied, "Oh, I know _everything_. I'm also willing to bet the majority of what you're trying on currently is some shade of blue; Gohan's favourite colour." Videl blushed; what, was the girl psychic? It was kinda creepy...

She was saved from having to answer by her communicator watch going off; fortunately she had put her own clothes back on already, so leaving wasn't shoplifting. Pressing the answer button as she quickly exited the booth, she asked, "What's up chief?"

The man's voice was almost frantic, and his face looked frazzled when it appeared on screen. "It's the Satan Sports Emporium; it's on fire! By all reports, there's still some kids trapped inside, and fire-fighters are having trouble putting the blaze out."

Cursing, Videl replied, "Alright, I'm on my way." She turned to her friends, saying, "Gotta go; police business. Guard my stuff!" as she started running.

Turning back to her boyfriend - well, the guy she _wanted_ to be her boyfriend - she saw he was looking panicked. Feeling his nerves, she asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"

Looking her in the eyes, he replied, his voice sounding scared, "It's the twins. Didn't you hear, the sports emporium is on fire; they were IN there!"

Kat gasped, partially because she remembered that fact, and partially because he'd heard what the police chief had said; from the distance they were away, her enhanced hearing had been able to pick it up fine, but normal ears wouldn't have, which would mean his hearing was as good as, if not better than, hers. Turning to her sister, she said, "Pi, we've..."

The older girl waved her off, replying, "I heard. Go. We'll be right behind you." The redhead nodded, dropping the bags and grabbing Leo's arm. He, too, dropped the bags they'd given him, and the two sprinted off. Finding a clerk, Pi dragged the poor girl over, giving her a wad of cash and saying, "I'm buying all of this. Keep the change." The girl just nodded dumbly, making a mental note of which items to record as sold, before Pi chucked everything into capsules - which she thanked Kami and Bulma for inventing to make shopping easier - and she and Erasa sprinted after the others.

o-o-o

He sprinted through the flaming hall, looking for the right door. He'd finally made it to the fourth floor, and, by the feel of things, Gohan had already evac'd four of the six kids. As he ran, he could hear voices calling for help; more accurately, he could hear a young female voice. Still running, he called out, "Faile! Faile, is that you?"

Behind one of the doors, a young redhead, ten years old in a matter of weeks (assuming she got out of here alive...), looked confused as she heard a reply to her cries; how did he know her name? No matter, he was here for her. "Yeah, in here!" she called back, looking to the two kids cowering behind her, "There's three of us in here." She heard footsteps stop outside the door, and before he could try it, she called out, "The door's locked; the lock was broken, and it clicked shut before we could get out."

She heard a reply, "Alright, I'll need you, and whoever's with you, to move away from the door. As far away as you can." Confused, but in no position to argue, she grabbed the younger kids' hands, dragging them away from the door and towards the tiled floor near the kitchenette. No sooner had the three of them set foot on the cold ground when the door exploded inwards, shards of wood flying everywhere. Letting out a little shriek she covered her face with her hands, waiting a moment before she lowered them again.

There, in the now-clear doorway, stood a muscled guy in a black and red outfit, his blood-red hair flowing as if in an unseen breeze. She gasped as his equally red eyes shifted towards her, but they held no malice, no hate, no negative emotion, only relief... and did she see a hint of fear? It wasn't fear for himself, of that she was sure, but it was gone too quickly for her to be sure she'd even seen it.

Seeing all three kids safe and sound, Kaen fought the urge to sigh with relief; with how long it had taken him to get here, anything could have happened. The older redhead was obviously Faile, but the other two, the redhead boy and blonde - no, yellow-haired - girl... _felt_ familiar somehow... Ah, there was no time for conundrums. "Come on," he said to the kids, "We've gotta get you kids out of here." However, just as he said this, the ceiling near the door collapsed, blocking the only exit.

"Oh no!" the young, straw-haired girl gasped, "How are we gonna get out now?"

"We're gonna die!" the boy added defeatedly.

"Not on my watch!" Kaen growled, spinning around and firing a ki blast at the opposite wall, blowing a huge gaping hole in the brick-and-mortar wall. Grabbing a hold of Faile, he slung her up onto his back, her legs around his torso and her arms around his neck. Turning his head slightly to look at her, he said gravely, "Hold on tight. I mean that, hold on with all your strength." The girl nodded fearfully, but Kaen had already turned away again, grabbing the two other kids and throwing them under his left arm, with similar orders to hold on tight to his arm. Precious cargo secured, Kaen turned towards the hole in the wall, using the last of his energy to create a ki barrier, to keep the kids steady, as he made a running leap out.

o-o-o

Falcon watched the building fearfully; so far, Saiyaman had gone in and come out twice, and still no sign of Phoenix and Faile. She vaguely noticed Saiyaman coming out a third time, or Videl's yellow copter flying low over the building; she focused entirely on the fourth floor. More importantly, she focused on the windows she knew lead into the room where Faile would be, where her class was.

Suddenly, a section of the wall exploded, raining dust and tiny brick fragments on the crowd, but she hardly noticed the crud landing on her; her eyes focused on the hole. She gasped as a glowing man ran towards the hole and jumped, soaring halfway up to the next floor before gravity took hold, and he fell like a stone. The man landed heavily on the concrete, spider-webbing the ground as he landed in a crouch, planting his right hand on the ground. It was only then that she noticed the two kids under his left arm, and, more importantly, the girl on his back.

"Faile!" she cried, running towards the man and her little sister. Said sister, hearing the cry, finally opened her eyes, noticing they were safely out of the building. Seeing her sister sprinting towards her, Faile stood up slightly on the guy's shoulders - she still hadn't gotten his name... - before leaping off, and into Falcon's arms. The older girl actually spun a full 360 from the force of the blow, but not once did she even consider letting go. Tearing up slightly, Falcon pulled her sister against her harder, burying her face in the girls hair as she whispered, "I'm so glad you're ok. I thought I'd lost you..."

Tears in her own eyes, Faile replied, "I think you would have, but this nice man broke right through the door to save us."

Falcon watched silently as the guy set the other two kids on the floor, and it was then she noticed how hard he was breathing. He looked on the point of passing out, and every breath came laboriously. "I can't thank you enough..." she started, but she gasped as he turned to face her, and she saw his face for the first time, "Phoenix! It's really you! I... I thought I saw you run in, but..." She almost dropped Faile as she ran up to him, instead holding her with one arm as she threw the other around him, in a chaste, but emotional, hug.

"Am I interrupting something?" A deep voice interrupted.

Jumping back, she saw Saiyaman smirking at her, and, for some reason, felt she had to defend herself, "Um... It's nothing... he's a friend, so..." She trailed off as Saiyaman chuckled at her; obviously, he knew more than he was letting on.

With a raised eyebrow, Saiyaman calmly walked over to Phoenix, grabbing his left arm and casually removing the ki suppressor, commenting wryly, "That looks uncomfortable 'citizen'." He drawled out the last word, a grin forming on his face; despite his calm, and even amused appearance, he clearly wanted to know why he was wearing it.

Phoenix, however, was having none of it, changing the subject by saying, "Your girlfriend's in there." If Gohan, a.k.a. Saiyaman, noticed the 'girlfriend' crack, he didn't act it; he'd obviously given it a lot more thought than he let on if he subconsciously ignored the remark. Instead, he cursed rather loudly in Saiyan, and Kaen, a.k.a. Phoenix, was rather shocked by what came out of his mouth. Closing his gaping mouth, he grinned and said, "Never thought _you'd_ know that word."

"Vegeta doesn't like being beaten." That was all the explanation he gave, and it was all he needed to.

Nodding once, Kaen said, "I'll kill the flames. You save the girl."

'Saiyaman' had flown into the building before Kaen even finished speaking. With a shrug, Kaen raised his right hand, using his powers to kill the flames; with full, unrestricted access to his ki, it was a simple enough matter. The raging inferno, that the fire department had spent almost half an hour trying to put out, died in, at most, ten seconds, just because he willed it to. Job done, Kaen nodded to his friends quickly before phasing out; he didn't particularly feel like answering any questions from the cops.

o-o-o

Blue eyes cast around the flame-filled room; she knew there was someone still in here, she could hear them, but she couldn't see them. A sudden scream drew her attention, and she sped off, slamming through a door in her haste to reach the child. It was a good thing too, that she had the momentum behind her, as, without slowing down, she scooped the girl up just as a ceiling beam crashed down where the child had sat.

'Shit, we're trapped. There's no way out!' She thought to herself, panicking slightly, but she didn't allow it to show; she had to protect the child at all costs, even from fear. Suddenly, as she watched the flames started dying around her; it didn't help much, the collapsed ceiling still prevented exit, but at least the danger seemed to be lessening.

"Need a hand?"

She spun around to face the source of the voice - the male voice. What she saw there probably should have surprised her, but it didn't. Floating down, from another hole in the ceiling, was Satan City's newest hero himself; well, with the arrival of this new guy she'd heard rumours about, he couldn't really be called that anymore, but at least she knew where Saiyaman stood... er, floated...

As loathe as she was to accept help, she had to admit, even to herself, that she needed it this time. "Just get me out of here Wonder boy." Ok, she accepted that she needed help, but she still had a reputation to uphold.

Gohan smirked down at her. He was tempted to just throw her over his shoulder like a sack of grain, but then he realised that he was trying to _befriend_ her, and that wouldn't help. Instead, he carefully took her hand, pulling her up into his arms, cradling her almost like a newborn baby; he couldn't have timed it better either, as no sooner had Videl's feet left the floor, it gave way with a tremendous crash.

Videl couldn't help a shiver of fear running down her spine as she rested safely in Saiyaman's arms; the girl rested in _hers_. A few more seconds, and she would've been killed, or at least severely hurt. She was a little surprised how gently Saiyaman held her, like she was a piece of fine china he was afraid to break. She almost swore she could _feel_ his concern for her, but of course she must've been imagining that; why would Saiyaman feel _anything_ for her?

Looking up, she suddenly realised that she could see up his helmet, albeit not very clearly. Unfortunately, as soon as she started looking he seemed to realise the same thing, tilting his head down so her view was again lost, and before she had a chance to see much of anything. Groaning softly, she barked, "Well, are you just gonna float there, or are you gonna get us out of here?"

Gohan let his thoughts wander as he flew Videl out of the building. There was something about holding her in his arms that just felt... right. Over the remarkably short flight, he realised that it was his Saiyan blood; obviously, his Saiyan side had chosen her as his mate, or a potential mate at least, and his human side was playing catch-up. Videl was, after all, the strongest human, and his Saiyan blood naturally wanted his mate to be as strong as possible, to ensure his offspring would survive the harshness of life, or some such nonsense; Vegeta could explain it better, but he hardly wanted to sit through the Saiyan version of the sex talk _again_.

As he set her down, he decided to have a little fun, and as her feet touched the ground, thus freeing his arms, he pinched her on the ass, something that surely everyone saw, and smirked as she whirled around to glare at him. Her 'glare' was more like a playful look, to him at least, but before she could 'berate' him he flew off, deciding to go around the block, then return as Gohan. It would be interesting to see what _she_ thought of the encounter.

o-o-o

Videl glared in the direction Saiyaman had flown off to; who did he think he was? **No one** did that to her and got away with it! When she saw him next, he was _so_ gonna get what was coming to him...

Her glare softened as she noticed Gohan approaching. He had a cute smile on his face, and she felt one come onto hers as he called out, "Hey Videl. Fancy meeting you here."

"Hey Gohan." She replied, scowling slightly as she remembered something, "Where's Angela?" She couldn't help the distaste that came out in her voice.

Gohan just laughed, "I have no idea. I'm just glad it's over..."

He was interrupted by a shrill cry, "Gohan! What's the big idea running off like that?"

"...Or not." He finished bitterly, adding sagely, "'To speak the name is to invoke the power'."

The preppy girl stomped up to him, veritable thunderclouds hanging over her head, and, as she saw Videl, she said, "OH, I get it. You dump me to spend time with this bitch!"

Gohan could see Videl getting worked up, but, as much as he'd enjoy seeing the raven haired girl retaliate violently, he knew he should put a stop to this, so he said, "Date's over Angela. It was over the second we came out of that tripe you wanted to see." Turning to Videl, he added, "Honestly, what sort of girl takes a guy to a movie just so she can drool over the male lead?" Turning back to his 'date', he finished, "The only reason I agreed to walk you home is because I _was_ being a gentleman, but even _I_ have my limits, and you passed them long ago."

"That hardly counts Gohan!" She shot back, "You spent half the date in the bathroom, and..."

"You'll have to excuse Angela," Gohan interrupted, turning to Videl and saying pointedly, "She has a bit of a fetish with bathrooms, dressing rooms, change rooms, that sort of thing." A very satisfied look crossed his face as he saw her standing there, gaping like a fish, before huffing and turning away, striding so purposefully you'd think she'd won that argument.

Videl felt another smile come to her face as she said amusedly, "Why Gohan, I never thought I'd ever see _you_ talk to a woman like that."

"I didn't," he replied, "Just a girl who thought too much of herself, playing with mommy's make-up."

She burst out laughing; it was just too funny! When she settled down again - and she noticed absently that Gohan had laughed with her - she asked, "So, what 'tripe' did she make you sit through?"

He bit back a sour reply, "Titanic, the Director's Cut." Videl gasped in horror; as if the first version wasn't bad enough, some idiot made it longer. She felt honestly sorry for Gohan, and it must have showed on her face, because Gohan laughed again and said, "Don't worry, I didn't see more than the first five and the last five minutes of it." At her curious look he added, "I roped some poor soul into taking my place. Gave him about five thousand zenni, but I found out after that the guy actually _liked_ Angela, and would probably have done it for free. Still, I felt I should compensate him for the movie..."

He trailed off as he saw Kat running towards them with some blue-haired guy; he vaguely remembered Kat mentioning something about a guy she met the day before, but he didn't listen too hard. The guy took a moment to catch his breath, and Kat faked it, obviously both to make him feel better, and for a cover for Videl; Gohan knew better however. Breath caught, the blue-haired guy asked borderline frantically, "Videl, is the fire out? Are the kids alright?"

Videl shrugged, "By the time I got here, Saiyaman had rescued most everyone. As for the fire, I honestly don't know what happened; one minute I was inside, surrounded by flames, and the next, by smouldering embers at worst." Gohan smiled to himself; so, Videl hadn't seen Kaen. Good, she was suspicious enough as it was without adding more fuel to _that_ particular fire.

Quickly scanning over the people assembled, Leo was a very familiar looking mop of red hair, and another of yellow hair, over by the ambulance, and he raced over, almost crying in relief at what he saw. When they saw him, the yellow-haired Gina raced up to him, crying her eyes out and babbling about how scared she'd been, but the redheaded Vincent just walked up calmly; he almost looked bored, but that was hardly new. He choked back a sob as he said, "I was so worried. I thought we'd lost you." Gina continued babbling incoherently; Vincent just shrugged.

"Wow, Vincent must be in shock," Kat muttered, walking up, "He's not even crying or anything."

"No, actually, he's always been like that," Leo replied with a shrug, "Gina seems to have been born with all his emotions; she has too many, he hasn't got enough."

Crouching down, Kat smiled warmly at Gina, opening her arms, and the girl needed no further invitation, throwing herself at this stranger her brother knew; she was calming down a bit, but she was still overly emotional.

Figuring his brother would provide the best answer, Leo asked him, "So, what happened to you guys?"

Vincent shrugged, "We got trapped inside the room with that older girl, Faile. Figured we were gonna die 'til that guy showed up."

"What guy?" Kat asked curiously; obviously, _they_ hadn't been rescued by Saiyaman, because everyone knew him on sight, and surely even Vincent wouldn't refer to the city's hero as 'that guy'.

The young boy just shrugged again, "Some redheaded dude in a black suit with a red torso. He was lookin' for Faile anyways; we just came along for the ride. I think I heard her sister, that Falcon chick, call him 'Phoenix'."

Kat gasped; she couldn't help it. This _couldn't_ be a coincidence. The only 'Falcon' she knew of was Kaen's friend, and she doubted there was more than one in this city at least. Plus, the 'black suit with red armour' was remarkably like the get-up Kaen used to wear all the time before they landed here, and Phoenix was _his_ alias. There was only one thing that didn't match; since when was Kaen a redhead?

o-o-o

"Alright, spill. How do you know Saiyaman? And what's with the hair?"

Kaen just shrugged; he'd gotten back to the club a while ago, and the others soon after, when Faile had been cleared by the paramedics. "So I've worked with the guy a couple of times, big deal. And what do you mean about my hair?"

The others looked genuinely confused by his question, but it wasn't until he heard the youngest there, Faile, comment innocently to her sister, "I thought you told me Phoenix has black hair?" that he knew something was up. A bemused look on her face, Falcon approached him with her make-up mirror, and to say he was shocked by the reflection that stared back at him was an understatement.

His normally black hair was now red, and not a 'black with red tint' red either, but proper, blood red; or, he noted idly, flame red. His black eyes had taken on a similar change, and he could actually see the black pupils of his eyes for the first time ever. He pressed the button on his watch, switching his outfit to normal, but the colour change remained.

Suddenly, it hit him; he was still under the effects of his Rage Pyre transformation. It was so natural to him now that he'd forgotten about it completely. Releasing it, he watched his eyes and hair fade back to their original black, and when he looked up he was met by his friends' questioning looks. He just shrugged, "I honestly have no idea; it's not 'sposed to do that..."

o-o-o

"Mom, Aeris, you're never gonna believe what happened to us!"

A green-haired woman, her face showing slight signs of age, and a teenage girl with pink hair, looked up from what they were doing at the straw-haired girl's cry. As she was often want to do, Gina had quickly gotten over the trauma of the situation, and had instantly labelled it 'cool'.

"What happened dear?" the green-haired woman asked gently; obviously, she was their mother.

"Our dojo caught fire today and we got trapped inside and we almost died but then some guy blew the door open and rescued us by blowing out a wall and I think it was that same Phoenix guy you met!" she exclaimed, all in one breath.

A look of mild horror tinged with shock filled her face as this news sank in, so she turned to her other, sensible younger child, who replied as calmly as always, "It's true mom. The place really did burn down, we really did get trapped, and the guy that saved us did really match the description you gave us of your rescuer, except he had red hair and eyes, and looked about 20. He even used the name 'Phoenix'."

She gasped, placing a hand over her heart, before calming down and saying soothingly, "Now, now, it couldn't possibly have been the same man who saved me."

"Why not mom?" Her eldest daughter asked softly.

With a sigh, she set her knitting down, her ears twitching as she replied, "Because the Phoenix that saved me did so about forty years ago."

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Dammit, these chapters just don't want to end... Each one keeps getting longer than the one before it. Guess I'm just gonna have to accept the longer chapters and move on. Ah well, there are worse fates. Hopefully, with the next chapter being back to school again, there'll be less need for jumping around, and thus the chapters can stand to be shorter. As it is, I still feel like I was trying to jam five people into a two man tent...

Oh, and a special prize to anyone who can guess what the deal is with the woman at the end, bar my beta reader Ninja, who already knows everything. :P I have no idea what that prize will be though, so, I'll leave that up to whoever works it out. Incidentally, I should give some sort of prize to ss7gohan for correctly guessing the last one, so, I dunno, drop me a line if you can think of something I can feasibly do via the internet.

One last note: for those who don't know, Chikyuu-Sei is the Japanese name for Planet Earth


	14. The Mad Scientists Three

--- When Worlds Collide: Omake ---

Interlude the First - The Mad Scientists Three (Well, two really, and one sounding board)

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Note: There may not be an Interlude the Second

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A series of loud crashes and the slamming of a door or two heralded the aggravated man's return to the house from his workshop, but if the short-haired woman washing the dishes noticed anything out of the ordinary about it, she didn't show it; to her, it was a fairly normal Saturday. In fact, as the man stormed inside, she casually reached for the next plate as she asked, "Having trouble with something dear?"

The man spun on his heel, biting back a few curses as he ran a hand through his hair; not curses directed at her, mind, but just in general. Now slightly calmer, Avarrdo replied, "Yeah, it's the personal shield generator. Again. The shield waveform lasts for a few blasts, but after four hits - five at best - it just shatters. I've tried every sort of power source I can think of, even those that don't fit on a portable device, but nothing. It's driving me crazy..."

April hummed a bit to herself as she thought on the issue. Despite what many people believed - including Avarrdo himself in his younger days - April was no dunce; while not the technological prodigy her mate was, she still had a genius IQ, even if she didn't show it a lot. She also knew that a lot of the problems her mate had with his inventions came about _because_ of his prodigal nature; he always thought too grand, and thus often missed the little details.

Placing the plate on the sink and drying her hands, she walked over to him, supplying, "Have you tried rerouting the power from the blast deflected rather than simply cancelling it out? I mean, it might take a bit more power per blast, but you can channel that power through the capacitors, thus recharging the batteries after every shot."

His face lit up, as the metaphorical light bulb clicked on above his head. "Brilliance!" Giving her a quick kiss, he asked rhetorically, "What would I ever do without you?"

She grinned, "Tear your hair out in frustration?"

He laughed, "Probably." Like April herself, Avarrdo wore a mask during his day-to-day life, but whereas hers was the doting housewife and mother, his was the always calm, always logical, always aloof scientist. Behind that mask, he could be quite the loving father and husband; he just chose not to show it too often. The way he reasoned it was that it bred independence in his kids, as he was distant enough to prevent them being clingy, while they knew that he _would_ be there if they truly needed him.

"Well, I better get back-" Before he could even finish his sentence, let alone return to his work, a sudden burst of loud music, originating from the lounge room, drew his attention. Heading over there as fast as would be dignified, he noticed the twins sprawled out in front of the TV, watching some CG thing of a blonde dude playing what looked something like the 'football' these Earther's played, only underwater. Waiting until the sequence was finished, he asked, "What are you two doing here? I thought you'd be training with Kaen today."

Oran shrugged without turning back to his father, replying, "Big brother said he had something else to do today."

Lime, who Avarrdo noticed was holding a black game controller, added, "He gave us this game console and a couple games, saying he'd played 'em and reckoned we'd like them as something to relax with between training."

Avarrdo blinked at that; Kaen, playing video games in his spare time, and encouraging the twins to do the same? He couldn't say he expected that. Like most things, however, Avarrdo adapted to this quickly; in truth, Kaen had spent more time raising the twins than he had, so who was he to argue?

Almost as if anticipating further questioning, Oran supplied, "This one's called 'Final Fantasy X', whatever that means. Kaen reckons it'll help us create tactics on the fly, and learn to use what we've got to out advantage, as, from what he says, some of the situations in this can be solved in different ways depending on what we've got at hand." The boy paused, before adding, "Plus, it looks pretty cool."

Avarrdo nodded, satisfied with that answer. Casting his mind back to that CG sequence that had drawn his attention, he felt a smile come to his face. Still smiling, he walked over to the phone; he had an idea...

o-o-o

Sweat dripped off his brow, impacting heavily with the plain white ground as the increased gravity dragged it down at close to five hundred times standard Earth gravity, but he barely noticed; having spent an equivalent of a week inside the room already, he hardly realised the gravity level wasn't normal. Besides, he had more important things to deal with.

His opponent had disappeared. After a brief lock-up that he had been the victor of, his opponent had sped away and vanished into the white expanse. His senses showed a ki signature behind him, but he didn't turn around; he had already been fooled by a ki decoy before, and he would not be fooled again. Closing his eyes and focusing harder, he sensed a faint signal to his right; he grinned.

Copying his opponent's tactics, he created a ki decoy of his own, while simultaneously erecting a ki mask to hide himself; a little tricky, but no problem for a master such as himself. Rethinking his strategy a little, he created a second decoy, sending the first towards the strong signal, and the second towards the weaker, while speeding on the angle between them both. Abruptly, he felt his first decoy meet the second, nullifying both of them, while the weaker signal flared to life again, changing location rapidly to avoid the oncoming blast, and, through fate or irony, heading in his direction.

Quickly readying a blast, he fired it towards the approaching signal, and within seconds it had been wedged between the two blasts. In the ensuing explosion, he almost missed the signal disappearing from the blast zone; almost. He swiftly jumped into a back flip, leaping clear over his retaliating opponent, and grabbed said opponent by the arms when he landed. Still grinning, he commented, "You must be getting tired; you're becoming predictable."

His opponent's head shook, a massive golden braid swinging from side to side. "Predict this." Before he could react, his opponent's legs had swung back to lock around his body, and wave after wave of blasts fired from the person's hands, striking his torso at point blank range.

Cutting the flow, his opponent kicked off his body before flipping in the air, cupping their hands and firing their trademark technique, striking his in the chest before he could recover, and sending him to his knees. Landing on the ground, his opponent walked up, smirking triumphantly before commenting, "Now who's predictable?"

Kellre glanced up at his mate, replying, with a matching smirk, "Still you." Before Raene could react, Kellre seemed to dart forward without moving, then again, before the actual crouched form moved; the end result: three copies of Kellre dashing forward. The first copy struck her torso dead on, sending her reeling backwards. The second copy charged low, knocking her legs out from under her, and sending her falling backwards. The third copy, the actual Kellre, moonsaulted into the air to strike her torso with a reverse knee drop, coming to land over her prone form, and all before she hit the ground.

Looking up at her mate, his rigid golden hair a striking contrast to the white room they fought in, she smiled softly, commenting, "Alright, I yield. For now."

He smiled back, offering her a hand up, "Then I accept. For now."

A pair of stomachs rumbling reminded them that it was well past time to call it quits for the moment. Wrapping an arm around his mate's waist, the two began walking back to the entrance area. The room they fought in, like the one found in Kaen and Pi's house, was a combination of the Gravity Room technology Bulma developed, with a few ideas borrowed from the Room of Spirit and Time the Lookout contained, albeit with a few modifications; aging fifteen times faster was _not_ acceptable.

As the two of them approached the door, they dropped out of their ascended state, their hair falling a bit before fading back to black; no point giving the others a chance to see how far along they'd come. Exiting the room, the sound of the surround sound entertainment system Kellre had installed became evident, as did the hooting and hollering of his younger brother; for reasons unknown, Truniz was a big fan of Earth baseball and football.

Separating, Raene headed into the kitchen to prepare lunch, while Kellre went to check on his layabout brother. From the mass of empty bottles in the entertainment room, the younger man had been t here for some time. Noticing his brother's arrival, Truniz called out, "Ah, there you are. 'Bout time you two called it a day." Before Kellre could launch into one of his trademark tirades, Truniz added, "Avarrdo called while you were training. He's got another one of his 'Good Ideas'."

"That a fact?" Kellre replied levelly, before putting a hand to his chin in thought. "In that case, we might have to pay him a visit..." His stomach making itself known, he added, "After lunch."

o-o-o

"So, what's this idea of yours that couldn't wait?"

Avarrdo glanced up at the slightly older man, replying, "I never said it couldn't wait." Before either man could respond to that statement, he continued, "However, since you're here, I'll explain my idea. Now, this idea came to me watching a video game the twins were playing."

"Wait," the younger man interrupted, "The twins were playing a video game? I thought they'd be training with the runt today."

Avarrdo shrugged, replying, "Apparently he had other things to do today, so he gave the games to them to train their minds instead of their bodies."

"Kaen has something to do he deems more important than the twins training," Kellre mused to himself. "Interesting..."

"Anyway," Avarrdo continued, "In the game they were playing I saw something interesting." Pausing for a moment, he entered a command into his computer; with the twins doing their homework now, he had managed to acquire the game, and copy the CG sequence in question, which is played on the screen. "I saw this pool, and I believe we can do better."

Kellre put one hand on his chin, musing, "Interesting."

Truniz, however, had a more animated response, "Hey, that game looks like fun."

"And that, Truniz, is the reason I believe we should do this," Avarrdo commented, "I believe this sport, this 'Blitzball', could give our fellow Saiyans something physical to do besides training, as well as providing good sport for the humans, both to compete in, and to watch."

"Agreed," Kellre replied, continuing, "Now, logistically it would need to be built over a body of water. The sphere pool frame itself is obviously a gravity field generator, such that, when water is pumped in, it stays inside the spherical shape. The platforms and goals could be easily created using shield generators."

"There's one problem with that design though," Avarrdo countered, "The gravity field of the pool would need to be designed such that matter won't automatically gravitate towards the centre of the sphere, but, if all motion is stopped, will simply remain in it's place, neither sinking, floating, or drifting."

"Hmm, you make a good point," the other man mused, "The gravity field will also need to be modulated such that people can freely move through it without hindrance. Given the speed of movement through the pool, the gravity inside may actually need to be _lighter_ than that of air."

"Speaking of air," Avarrdo added, "There is also the problem of the need to breath. The research I have done for this 'Blitzball' shows that a game is two rounds, plus potential for overtime, and that each round lasts for five minutes. If we want humans to be able to play this game as well, we have to take that into account. Holding their breath for five minutes is a stretch for even specially trained humans; add in the factor of tackling and we have a problem, and giving people air tanks would only hinder mobility."

"Why not just make the water breathable?" Truniz, silent until now, commented. When the pair of older men turned his way, he clarified, "If the water was breathable, there'd be no issue of conflict; you can't drown in something you can breath."

"Yes, that _is_ a good idea," Kellre nodded.

Avarrdo nodded as well, "Yes, although it does bring up a new issue; the creation of a body of breathable water, over which the sphere pool is to be built. And that body of water would need to be constantly maintained, lest it evaporate."

"Couldn't you just _make_ the water you needed?" Truniz asked. When they turned to him again, he continued, "I mean, from that little video clip, it looks like the device isn't siphoning water into itself; it's _creating_ water. Couldn't you just do that - turn air into breathable water?"

The room was silent for a while, making Truniz believe he'd said something incredibly stupid, before Avarrdo shouted, "Brilliance! If we implemented a device that can 'liquefy' air, we could modify its chemical compound not just to make the water breathable, but also to modify its density, solving the problem of freedom of movement."

"Indeed," Kellre continued, "And if we are creating liquid to our specifications, we can easily contain it within an area of our choosing, simply through atomic modulation."

Truniz stood back, a satisfied look on his face. Like April, Truniz's main job when working with his older brother and his friend was to provide 'low-tech' solutions to problems. Truniz was no technical genius, or even a genius at all - far from it in fact - but he did know how to deal with these two. More importantly, Truniz often provided straightforward, simple answers that both of the geniuses would have never thought of, and helped them realise that some of their grander ideas were without merit.

As it turned out, Truniz's input wasn't really required after that; not to say he didn't still give it, mind, just that the older Saiyans had all the information and ideas they needed to start work. And, as it turned out, enough to finish too.

o-o-o

"Alright, what'd you call me over for?"

Sunday rolled around, and in a feat that surprised even the three of them, they had managed to throw together at least a prototype sphere pool already, awaiting testing; granted, it had taken all night, but, that was a detail. And, of course, for that they needed their favourite 'test subject'; Kaen.

"Well son, we have-" Avarrdo began.

"You want me to play guinea pig again don't you?" Kaen interrupted.

"Oh, don't sound so scandalized," Truniz commented dryly.

"Besides," Kellre added, "You're probably going to like what we've done."

Kaen sighed, "Alright then, I'll take a look, but I'm not promising anything more."

Avarrdo just grinned slightly, "Good enough."

o-o-o

"This. Is. AWESOME!" Kaen couldn't help but gape. Turning to the older Saiyans, he asked incredulously, "You guys made a sphere pool? Why? How?" Avarrdo gave his son a basic rundown on both the 'why' and 'how' of it; 'basic' translating to 'thorough and technical'. When he was done, Kaen had just one question: "You're using liquid oxygen? Are you mad? Last I checked, that's below freezing, and thus fairly lethal."

"I'm not mad; I'm eccentric," Avarrdo replied with a wave of his hand, before adding, "We're not making liquid oxygen; we're liquefying air. Making breathable water. You'll find it's quite non-lethal."

"Well, it should be at least," Kellre added with a shrug, "Besides, it lava can't burn you, I doubt liquid oxygen will freeze you."

"We have full confidence in your ability to survive," Truniz grinned, "After all, if you haven't been killed thus far, you've got precedence. You're at least ten-and-oh."

"Your support fills me with confidence," Kaen drawled sarcastically. Taking a breath, he muttered, "Well, here goes..." before launching himself off the ground, and into the sphere of water.

After watching the teen swim about the sphere for a few minutes, Avarrdo called out, "See? I told you it's non-lethal." Kaen just gave him the finger. Laughing, he added, "Why don't you try seeing if the water's breathable. It should be, but..."

Holding up one finger, to indicate 'wait a minute', he swam to the 'bottom', sticking his head out before calling out, "I'd rather try that near the edge. You know, just in case..." When they nodded, he stuck his head back in again, and counted down with his fingers, before breathing out, and in again; other than coughing a bit at the sensation of liquid going into his lungs, he seemed fine.

"So, it's a success then?" Avarrdo asked.

Kaen nodded, giving the men the okay sign while fluctuating his ki in a specific pattern, a 'signal' he used to get the attention of Pi, Kat and the twins. The four in question arrived within minutes, and, after a quick rundown, joined Kaen in the sphere pool; before long, the five of them were tackling each other, throwing each other around, and generally having a grand old time.

"Well, it appears this experiment is a success. Where to from here?" Kellre asked his slightly younger friend.

"Well," Avarrdo began, "Obviously we need to upsize to one large enough for a game, add in stadium seating..." As the two geniuses slipped into talk of grand plans for the future, Truniz just shook his head and walked off; knowing those two, they'd be at it for hours, and he was dying for a drink before they dragged him back into the discussion. Grinning to himself as he headed home, he mused to himself, 'Such is the life of a genius' brother, I guess...'

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

This, like the title suggests, is an omake, using the definition of 'extra feature'; in this case, this chapter would be a deleted scene. This was just an idea I had that didn't get written until after the rest of the series was complete. It has absolutely no impact on the main plot of the series whatsoever, other than filling in a little more detail about what happened the rest of the weekend. Hopefully this chapter doesn't break causality elsewhere in the story, but if it does, well, it's an omake, so...

I'm kinda sorry this isn't a 'real' chapter update, but hopefully this'll hold you guys 'til Wednesday. To make up for it a little, I'll give you guys a little help with the challenge question I posted in the last chapter. Now, ss7gohan had a pretty good guess, but it's not quite right. To help clarrify, thusfar the only version of Kaen to have set foot, ever, on planet Earth is the one in this story, multiverse travel or no, and that didn't happen until the Android Saga. The Kaen in the story is from the same dimension as the story's Earth, just from some decades prior; the time of the destruction of planet Vegeta, to be exact.

Confused yet? I know I sure as hell am, and I wrote the damn thing! Well, if you can make sense of my ramblings, feel free to have a go. Keep those guesses coming; I may not be a whore for reviews, but that doesn't mean I don't like gettin' 'em:)


	15. A Change of Pace

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 14 - A Change of Pace

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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"Come on Idiot, keep up."

He restrained a groan, walking forward blindly as he tried not to drop the pile of packages in his arms; she had wanted to go shopping, and as always, he was her, quote, 'helper monkey', end quote. There were so many bags and boxes that he couldn't see where he was going if he wanted to, and as such he didn't notice the cracked, raised ground about a foot in front of him.

His foot caught on the raised section of concrete, and without his arms to stabilise him he fell, hard, the purchases falling roughly on the sidewalk. Spinning around, she growled, "Watch what you're doing! What are you, stupid?"

"I'm sorry." The words were out of his mouth before he had a chance to process them, his instinctual reaction to every situation.

She blew out an exasperated breath, her bangs dancing, as she muttered, "I know you are. You _always_ are." He scrambled to collect all the items again, but her short skirt, combined with how she was standing, and where she was in relation to the packages, allowed him a fairly good view under her skirt. Unfortunately, he spent one second longer looking than he should have, and when she noticed where his attention was focused she growled, "Pervert!" and slapped him as hard as she could manage; 'as hard as she could manage' turned out to be enough to send him sliding back three feet, at least.

Hands on her hips, she stood there glaring at his prone form, her tail lashing behind her, as she exclaimed, "You such a stupid, perverted little boy! I don't know why I bother with you Kaen!"

"Because I'm the only one that'll put up with you..." he muttered under his breath sourly as he picked himself up. Despite the fact they'd been together as long as he could remember, they still hadn't bonded yet. Hell, they'd only kissed once, and that was because, quote, 'she was bored', end quote.

"What was that?" she growled. The second the words reached his ears she had his shirt in her hands, dragging his head up to her face; well, he _thought_ the words came first, but if it were possible he'd almost swear she managed to beat her own voice to him.

"Nothing, nothing. Sorry." he exclaimed frantically; she was in an exceptional bad mood today, and he didn't want to make it worse.

She dropped him with a "Hmph!" and turned around, striding away as she commented idly, "Such a boring boy. You're so spineless it's a wonder you can stand upright. Maybe you should do us all a favour and just die." She bit back a wince as the words left her mouth; she was being exceptionally harsh, and she knew it, but she wanted him to fight back. Even if it cost her their already fragile relationship.

The words seemed to have the desired effect, as he stood up and shouted, "You know what? To hell with you Pi! You think you're the only girl around that'll talk to me? Wrong. I have had _dozens_ of offers over the years, but I turned them all down, because in some **sick** twist of fate I actually _liked_ you! Well fuck you; I'm not jumping through your hoops any longer!" He punctuated his statement by kicking one of the packages on the ground near him towards her, hard; it would've hit too, and probably hurt a lot, if she hadn't ducked out of the way at the last second.

She was honestly shocked; some of the other girls had actually asked him out? She thought she'd scared all of them away, doing everything short of branding her name in his forehead. Still, she was pleased by the fire in his eyes; he was getting there, but it wasn't good enough yet, so she decided to stoke the flames some more. "Oh, so you're a tough guy now are you? Look at you; you're pathetic!" She walked towards him slowly, purposefully, as she continued, "You're a joke. A weakling. A coward." She stopped in front of him, grinning triumphantly as she finished, "A worthless excuse for a Saiyan."

With a feral roar he lashed out with his right hand, and she was so caught off guard she didn't even get a chance to _think_ about defending before his punch crashed into the side of her face, knocking her on her ass. No sooner had she hit the ground when the fire faded from his eyes again; he fell to his knees, and he looked on the verge of tears as he buried his face in his hands, mumbling incoherently at how worthless he was.

She realised then that she'd gone too far, pushed too hard too quickly, and risking undoing all her hard work she moved to comfort him, but she never had the chance. A sudden explosion sent her flying, and when the dust cleared, there was no sign of his body. She did, however, hear a dark chuckle behind her, so she spun around and spat, "What did you do that for you bastard?"

He chuckled again as she froze upon seeing his face, "What? You wanted him to die; I just granted your wish." He paused, taking a moment to look her over and sniff the air, before a dark grin crossed his face, "Well, well, unbonded I see. And still 'pure' to boot. Maybe I should take you for myself then." She started sobbing softly, and the grin slipped, "So, you really did care for him then, despite your hateful words?" She nodded softly, and he nodded once in return, before charging a blast in his hand, firing it at her as he added, "Then I will send you to him."

o-o-o

He growled to himself as he strode down the hall, and it was only a rare moment of self-control that prevented his tail from lashing about; how had he ever let himself be talked into this? Pi had decided that she'd had enough of him wearing the same outfit every day - despite the fact that at least half the student body did the same - so she'd given him an ultimatum: either wear something new, of her choice, or go hungry until he did.

Despite the grave threat, he had not instantly caved; sure, he'd given in, but he'd dragged it out as long as possible. In hindsight, he really should have fought her choice a little harder... Pi had obviously been in a particularly vindictive mood because he hadn't told her why he was in the city on Saturday - wearing a ki suppressor no less - when he'd clearly told her he was going to be at home training. Thus, the clothes she's decided he was going to wear consisted of a fairly normal pair of black slacks, topped off with, of all things, a pink shirt!

He was going to get her back for this; he was still her sensei, and they were doing martial arts in PE today... There was one saving grace about the shirt; across the front, the words 'I hurt people who mock me' were printed in scrawl-like writing. He intended to make sure that the message wasn't an idle one; so far, he'd already added no less than half a dozen names to his list, to await a better time than the period before class. A smirk overtook his scowl as he let the thoughts develop; lunchtime sounded like a good idea...

o-o-o

She slammed her locker closed, sending a resounding crash throughout the quickly emptying hallway; the students would've used the excuse that class was starting, but she knew the truth. They were scared of her, of when she got angry. And they should be. She was Videl Satan, and when she got angry, bones got broken. Her current mood wasn't 'angry' though; no, angry didn't quite do it justice. Hell, she couldn't even think of a word that could accurately describe her mood, other than to say that she was _itching_ for a police call in, so she had an excuse to hurt someone.

She'd spent almost the entirety of Sunday, and what of Saturday she had left after the fire at the sports emporium, searching for information on Gohan, Kaen, and the girls, as well as Saiyaman and this new guy she'd heard about, this 'Phoenix'. She still suspected that Saiyaman was Gohan, and if her gut was right, that made Kaen Phoenix, but that was just a gut feeling; she had no proof to back it up, and she'd never even seen the guy, so she still didn't even have proof he existed. However, despite all that effort, she'd found nothing.

Well, nothing wasn't an accurate description of what she'd found, just nothing that helped her. She'd managed to dig up a lot of information about people who could, apparently, fly, and shoot beams of light; most of it rumour or hearsay, and all of it discredited by her father as 'tricks', but after seeing Saiyaman do what she had, she was willing to go on a little faith. One of the more concrete pieces of information was reports of a technique called the 'Kamehameha Wave', used by several entrants of the Tenkaichi Budokai in previous years; all of them before her father's time, and also all tricks, mirrors, and lightshows, according to the afro'd blowhard she called 'dad'.

Striding purposefully down the hallway, she paused when she opened the door, and it was only the murderous look on his face that caused her to swallow her laughter. There, in the back row of the classroom, was Kaen, in a _pink_ shirt. It was borderline hilarious, however, she had to admit, even to herself, that he scared her a little, so she refrained from pissing him off.

Gohan, however, seemed to have no fear of reprisal from his flame-haired friend when he walked in moments later, walking right up to him, a massive grin on his face, as he taunted, "Nice shirt. You getting in touch with your sensitive side? No, wait, let me guess: You lost a bet? No, no, I got it: You felt the colour helped your complexion?"

Videl noticed Kaen start growling, and not a normal, angry growl either - the type she herself was known for - but a real, animal growl, the kind you expected from a guard dog about to rip out a trespasser's trachea; however, instead of making Gohan back down, it just made his grin widen, if that were possible. Feeling slightly worried for the safety of her crush, she said, "Uh, Gohan, I wouldn't egg him on any further." At his surprised look in her direction, she quickly appended, "Oh, you know, because I don't want to have to arrest you for harassing a dignitary and all."

Gohan just shrugged, replying, "If you want me to stop Videl, I will." With no more than that, he sat down as if nothing had happened, and within seconds class was under way.

o-o-o

As she got changed for PE, Videl was surprised just how... normal, the day had been, especially considering how it began. 'Then again,' she thought to herself, 'I don't think it's possible to get worse than last Monday'.

She noticed her newest friends changing into what looked like a fairly standard-cut gi, with a couple of differences. While both gi's were cut in the same fashion - the same as that fairly popular among the twelve animal styles - in-keeping with their colour preferences, Kat's was black, and Pi's was forest green; however, both wore an identical blood red undershirt. Both wore different colour belts - Pi's was black, the standard issue colour for masters of a style, while Kat's was a deep blue, indicating a high level of training, but not mastery - and yet, both had identical symbols on their backs, one she didn't recognise, but could translate: Fire.

Curiosity getting the better of her, and figuring that they were her friends, and thus asking questions was fine, she asked, "What style is that? I mean, I'd like to think I had a fairly good knowledge of the existing styles, but I don't recognize that one."

Kat started giggling as if she knew some joke Videl didn't, but it was Pi that answered, showing strains of resisting a grin of her own, "Well, it's not an officially recognized style as of yet, and thus far there are only four people who use it, Kat and myself included, outside of the style's master; we simply wear the symbol as a sign of respect for our sensei, not to show others what style we know."

Nodding once, Videl replied, "I can understand that. So who's your sensei? Maybe I've heard of him."

Kat burst into full-blown laughter, and the amused grin finally broke through on Pi's face as she replied, "Oh you've heard of him alright. In fact, I don't think you could forget him if you tried." The older girl waited a few moments for that to settle in, but when the clarity didn't show on the pigtailed girl's face, she added, "Our sensei's Kaen; remember, he told you so when you confronted him last week."

Videl coloured; she couldn't help it. How in Kami's name could she have forgotten that? The day had been a train wreck from start to finish, and she'd run it through her mental fine-toothed comb enough to work out exactly where she'd gone wrong, so as to not do it again, and yet she'd forgotten that little fact. As the memories of that little conversation drifted back to her, and her embarrassment deepened, she muttered, "I should probably apologise to him for jumping to conclusions like that..."

Shaking her head as she and Kat grabbed their stuff and started heading out, Pi just stated, "Don't; trust me, it'll only make things worse. Besides, he doesn't care, and embarrassing you like that was, to him, apology enough. See you out there."

o-o-o

He cracked his knuckles, a borderline sadistic grin spreading across his face as he waited for his victim to appear. After putting up with taunts all day, he would finally get his revenge; Videl's little admonishment had only lasted until the end of first period. He'd already dished out sweet retribution to everyone on his list bar his spiky-haired rival/friend during lunch; due to PE, his regular sparring session had been cancelled. Now, the final name on the list would get what was coming to him.

He noticed the girls come out of the dressing room, fully decked out in their gi's, and when Pi started walking in his direction he just shook his head; they would not be sparring today. No, today he had bigger fish to fry. She just shrugged, walking over to Videl when the girl exited the change room; he was too far away to hear what was said, but he assumed she was asking/telling her friend that they'd be paired up today. Kat, after a few moments spent looking around, sprinted towards the blue-haired boy she was crushing on, but he knew she would; the girl would find any excuse to spend more time with him.

The grin on his face shifted into a smirk, his canines standing out foremost, as he noticed the dark haired boy exiting, the last in the class to leave the change rooms. Cracking his knuckles again, he chuckled to himself, "Crufdesa."

Videl looked around as she half-listened to the teacher drone on about what they were doing today, but it was nothing she didn't already know; students were going to be grouped based on experience levels, then assigned tasks based on those levels. She herself was considered, at least as far as the school program went, in the advanced category, if not expert, and thus she'd be left to her own devices; the other two categories were, of course, beginner and intermediate. This system would be applied for at least the first week, because they were hoping to get an expert in by the second; from what she'd heard through the grapevine, the school was trying for a former Budokai entrant/winner, but she hadn't heard who they were vying for.

Judging by what she'd seen and heard so far, she assumed that her new friends would be joining her in the advanced group; Pi had already asked her if they could spar today. She'd quickly agreed, eager to see what she could do, but was a little disappointed she couldn't go with her original plan. 'Well,' she thought to herself, 'He might not even be in the advanced group...'

She suddenly realised that she hadn't actually seen her crush emerge from the change rooms, nor had she spotted his flame-haired friend - she still refused to call him _her_ friend, but that was neither here nor there - when she noticed the pair of them sizing each other up away from the rest of the class. The pair were wearing nearly identical gi's in the same style worn by the girls, Kaen's being red, and Gohan's blue, but sans undershirts; she had to resist turning into a drooling fan girl at the sight of Gohan in his gi, but she managed.

No sooner had the teacher said that those in the advanced group could work by themselves that she noticed both guys moving a distance away from the others; the teacher didn't bothered to test the advanced, relying on the honour system, but would know soon enough if people lied about their skills and experience. She heard Kaen say something as they fell into their respective stances - what he'd said was "Mad'c tyhla rymv-pnaat" if she'd heard right, but what that meant was anyone's guess - and then the two sped towards each other, fists and feet flying.

Videl had to fight to keep from gaping as she watched the two teens fight; the pair had less years combined than many other fighters, her father included, and yet the way they fought was, for lack of a better word, perfect. Their forms held no exploitable weaknesses, and they moved at speeds that few were capable of, she herself being one of the only she knew of, and yet very few attacks slipped through. Fists were met by forearms, and feet were met by shins; in all, it looked like no more than one in every ten attacks slipped through the defence.

Now, what Videl didn't know was that the pair were packing each blow with a decent amount of ki, so that each attack was made with the strength equivalent to a speeding car, by human levels. Added to this was the fact they both had to hold back their strength and speed, to keep within the 'normal' levels in case anyone was watching; it was high end normal, sure, but not impossible for humans to achieve.

These two facts made for a dangerous combination, as one slip-up had the potential to wipe out a fairly large portion of the school. Shaking her head to herself, Pi just muttered bitterly, "Oh jeez... they're at it again..." Blowing out an exasperated breath, she added, "Men, so irresponsible. I just hope neither one of them loses this little game..."

Tearing her eyes away from the fight before her, Videl commented questioningly, "They always train like this?"

With a shrug, she replied, "Oh, together certainly, but they're not usually like this. Now, do you want to get started, or would you rather watch the boys some more?"

Videl, however, didn't hear that last part, turning her gaze back to the fight; obviously, had she heard it, she would have chosen the second option. Reaching the wrong conclusion from the girls words, she thought to herself, 'I wonder why they're fighting this hard... Maybe they're acting tougher to show off or something, or maybe Kaen said something to get Gohan worked up. Or maybe...' Videl's speculation continued to run rampant as she stared, unblinking, at the fight before her, but her scrutiny didn't go unnoticed.

Kaen smirked to himself amidst the flurry of blows; he needed but one distraction, and he'd just found it. Blocking a quick succession of punches, Kaen commented seemingly offhand, "Your mate's watching." Gohan turned his head a fraction, confirming that Videl was, in fact, watching, but that split second was all Kaen needed. Charging a fist with as much ki as he could muster, and keeping within the limits of what was expected of him, he threw a punch at the blind side of Gohan's face; it was a cheap shot and he knew it, but he didn't get off scott free.

The blow made contact with a sickening crunch, the force of it actually causing Gohan to spin around, so he fed off the momentum, lashing out with a roundhouse kick that caught Kaen square in the chest. While the force of Kaen's blow sent Gohan to his knees, Gohan's counter actually sent Kaen flying backwards, landing harshly on his spine before he dug his hands in and flipped onto his hands and knees, breathing heavily.

All attempt at clandestine observing flew out the window as the blow landed, as Videl raced forward to see if Gohan was alright; she was met by the sight of her crush with a quite obviously dislocated jaw. Concern filling her voice, she asked, "Are you alright?"

Snapping his jaw back into place, and flexing it a couple of times, Gohan just replied, "Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry, I had it coming."

Suddenly remembering the incident earlier that day, a ting of anger slipped into her voice as she commented, "This is about this morning isn't it? Was it really worth it?"

Gohan just grinned, "It was worth every damn second." Seeing his friend getting back to his feet, he called out, "Feel better now? Have you gotten it out of your system?"

Kaen just shook his head, "Not all of it, not yet. However," he paused, breaking out into a grin, "I'm 'visiting' the 'prince' this afternoon, so..." Gohan just shook his head, also bearing a grin, and the two returned to their fight, only at a more sedate speed this time.

Walking away, Videl muttered angrily to herself as she found her theories dashed to pieces; she had been so sure those two were the new heroes in town, but the facts didn't add up. Saiyaman could stop bullets, with his _face_, and yet _one punch_ from Kaen had been enough to dislocate Gohan's jaw; conversely, if the rumours were true, Phoenix could rip the engine block from a moving car with a single blow, and yet his punch didn't cave Gohan's skull in. Saiyaman could send a car rolling end over end for close to 25 metres by _yelling_ at it, yet an obviously hard blow from Gohan had sent Kaen a mere 3 metres, tops; Phoenix could, reportedly, jump out of a four story window and land on his feet, unharmed, yet Kaen couldn't even withstand one kick to the chest. Both heroes were seemingly impervious to bullets, yet mere punches and kicks left obvious bruises, and the occasional open wound.

Now, she had no way of knowing that, while the blow to Gohan's jaw was easily strong enough to rip out an engine block, Gohan's ki had absorbed most of the blow, and his Saiyan physiology had done the rest, reducing the damage to a mere dislocation. Similarly, Gohan's kick would have sent a normal person flying horizontally for at least 30 metres before gravity would begin to take hold again, but Kaen had likewise absorbed most of the blow. Finally, the force needed to cause a bruise on either of them was, due to their enhanced cell density, enough to put a hole clear through a foot of solid steel.

Shaking her head, she put it out of her mind; she'd lost a couple of suspects, but the search would go on. In the meantime, she still had a spar with Pi to do today, and she intended to find out just how good the girl was before the day was out.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Crufdesa - Showtime

Mad'c tyhla rymv-pnaat - Let's dance half-breed

I decided to update a day sooner than usual because the last chapter I posted was technically not part of the series; well, not a core part anyway. The next update will be at the usual time.

Out of curiosity, I wonder if anyone can pick the anime this chapter's opening scene was inspired by. I don't think it's very hard, but I'm curious nonetheless. Hell, I reckon you could pick it from the very first line, but then, I wrote it, so...

PsycoT got very close with his/her (sorry, not sure which...) guess about Leo's mother; I can report that, yes, she is an alien. I will also admit that this is probably about as close to the exact answer as anyone will get without having read The Phoenix Chronicles, in which she actually appeared once; true to her report, 'Phoenix' _did_ actually save her at some point in his past. For those of you who haven't read it, or don't feel like reading it, feel free to guess her species; for those who have, feel free to guess which chapter she appeared in, which should give away her species. Personally, like the question in the paragraph above, I don't think the species is too hard to pick, but, again, I wrote it.


	16. Princely Affairs

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 15 - Princely Affairs

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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"Sir, there's a ship incoming. Holographic confirms that it's the Ice Queen."

"Damn, he's early." He scowled, turning away from the sergeant on radar and directing his question at the lieutenant to his right, "What's the status on Project 3XT?"

"Project 3XT sir?" The young female replied, slightly startled, before recovering her composure, "Well, it's still in the experimental stages sir, but your father - I mean, Colonel Avarrdo - reported earlier today that it was installed and fully operational, ready for use."

He nodded, "Very well than. Send word that it is to be prepared for use immediately, if not sooner." Project 3XT was their latest defensive measure, built for this exact purpose; it wasn't given a descriptive name of what it was or did in case said name leaked out via spies. The only people who knew what project 3XT did were his trusted elite soldiers, and the construction team themselves; his father's most trusted assistants.

"What is the meaning of this? What's going on here?" A new voice interjected.

He rolled his eyes, "I was wondering when you were going to so up Garce..."

"That's Prince Garcil, Kapskaen." The short man replied, a scowl on his face.

"That's Lieutenant-Colonel Kapskaen, _Garce_, and if you insist on me calling you 'Prince', then you will address me as 'Prince Kapskaen'."

The elder man's scowl deepened, "That title means nothing and you know it. The deranged ramblings of a man who believes he sees the future, spoken on the eve of the extermination of almost the entire royal family."

"Yes, amazing how you managed to survive that tragedy and take up the void filled by the tragic death of the Vegeta line..." Kaen replied sarcastically.

"Listen here you little whelp!" Garcil barked, spittle flying in his anger, "I am a member of the royal family, the only surviving member at that, and I have attained this position by blood rite. The crown _will_ be mine, make no mistakes."

"And I have earned my prince-hood on the fields of battle. Which do you think the people will recognize more, a man who demands respect by blood, or a man who requests respect by deed?" The Vegeta line, and almost all of the rest of the Saiyan royal family, had all died tragically about a month ago, falling victim to a strange virus that seemed to only affect those with what was known as the 'royal gene' in their blood; King Vegeta LIV, and his son and heir Prince Vegeta LV, had both died as a result, but Vegeta's mate, Queen Latta, had not fallen ill, instead following her husband when their bond was broken upon his death.

Despite this virus wiping out everyone who, by blood, had the rite to rule, Garcil had survived, and no other Saiyan had caught so much as a runny nose from the virus. Tests, post mortem, had lead to the discovery that the virus was a specially engineered gene virus, one that could only have come from labs the likes of those Frieza had under his control. Further tests, conducted on a sample of Garcil's blood Kaen's spies had... acquired... showed that he, 'miraculously', had the anti-virus in his system, which lead to a single conclusion: Garcil worked for Frieza.

Kaen, however, had been named Vegeta's successor by the king's advisor, now his advisor, the legendary Bardock. Reportedly, his vision had showed that, upon the death of the Vegeta line, the commander of the Saiyan guardsmen would be the key to the ongoing survival of the Saiyan culture; down any other path lay destruction. That same night, the previous commander of the guardsmen, General Kale, followed his mate, a royal, upon her death to the virus, leaving his second, Kaen, in charge, and thus, naming him Vegeta's successor, something that had annoyed Garcil to no end; obviously, Frieza had engineered events such that Garcil would become king, a king controlled by the Cold Empire, unlike the ever-rebellious Vegeta.

Garcil's scowl darkened further, but he had no retort for that final comment, so he changed the subject, "You still haven't explained what you're doing here."

"I don't have to explain anything to you," Kaen replied dismissively, waving the older man off. "You and I may be rivals for the throne, but _I_ still command the armed forces, and thus, I report to no-one but myself."

Before the short royal could reply, Kaen's second in command, and mate, marched into the command centre, giving him a brief salute - for the benefit of Garcil only - before saying, "All preparations have been completed Kaen."

"Incoming transmission sir." The same sergeant from before called out.

"Right on time," Kaen muttered, before raising his voice, "Put it on the main screen sergeant."The main screen flared to life, and the pale pink-and-white face of Frieza himself blurred into view. A touch of sarcasm in his voice, Kaen said, to the self-appointed dictator on the screen, "Let's skip the pleasantries and get right to business. Not that it isn't a pleasure to see you again, but could you explain your reason for being here?"

"Still as blunt as always aren't you boy?" Frieza replied, the start of a mocking sneer tugging at his mouth, "Well I'm not interested in talking to you boy. I want to talk to the king."

Garcil opened his mouth to reply, but Kaen cut him off, "Then you'll have to address Garcil and myself both; the verdict is still out on who is to be crowned king, but initial polls seem to be leaning my way." A slight scowl seemed to appear on the Aisu-Jin's face, but it was gone quickly. Pressing on, Kaen added, "I guess this puts a bit of a crimp in your plan to control the Saiyan race doesn't it? Now explain your reasons for being here, like I already don't know, before we will be forced to retaliate."

The officers in the control room all kept stoic, albeit grim, faces at this comment, but none spoke against him; he was, after all, their commanding officer, and he had the best interests of the Saiyan race in mind. Garcil, however, had no such resolve, turning to Kaen and barking, "You can't do that! This is an act of war!"

"We've been at war ever since the Vegeta line was assassinated; this is an _end_ to war." Kaen interrupted.

Turning to the video screen, Garcil started to continue, "Lord Frieza, I..."

"Lieutenant Diive, take Garcil into custody." Kaen interrupted again, "He is hereby charged with treason against the Saiyan people, and with conspiracy to eliminate the royal family of Vegeta."

Frieza smirked to himself as Garcil was dragged off, kicking, screaming, and complaining the whole way. "So boy, it seems you've got it all figured out then." His smirk darkened as he continued, "Well, I guess this means I won't be adding the Saiyans to my empire. Looks like I'll just have to destroy you all instead."

The screen went dark as the transmission ended, and within moments an alarm started blaring. "Sir, it appears Frieza is preparing a Death Ball; he's going to destroy the city, if not the very planet itself."

Holding himself upright, Kaen just replied, "Steady men. On my mark, activate Project 3XT." The alarm frequency increased as the Death Ball, Frieza's trademark attack, drew ever closer. Steeling himself, Kaen barked, "Mark!"

As Project 3XT flared into life, all around the walls of the city three-pronged steel poles rose out of specially constructed towers; the 'outer' prongs pointed towards the other towers, while the 'inner' prong pointed upwards, to a convergent point above the palace itself, which stood in the very centre of the city. When they all locked into position, beams of energy fired from each of the prongs, forming a laser cage around the city, and when the cage was complete, the 'walls' filled in, forming a shield around the entire city, upon which the Death Ball collided, and held; the shield, and the city, stood firm.

"Activate stage 2, now!"

As stage 2 of Project 3XT activated, the Death Ball began to grow smaller, the 'beams' holding the shield sending pulses down to the towers as they siphoned off the energy, and what could only be an especially large laser cannon rose slowly out of the tallest spire of the palace. After a few moments calibration, the cannon locked onto the Ice Queen, still if orbit of the planet, and it soon became obvious where the Death Ball's energy was going, as the nozzle of the cannon began glowing more and more brightly, as the Death Ball continued to shrink, until, finally, Frieza's attack was completely drained.

"FIRE!"

With a massive roar of energy, the giant cannon discharged, sending a bolt of raw energy, almost double the strength of Frieza's blast - thanks to the capacitor relay - directly towards Frieza's flagship; the blast passed harmlessly through the shield, which was only built to keep blasts _out_. Frieza barely had time to utter a final, surprised, "What!" before he, and his entire ship, was destroyed in a massive explosion seen across the planet. Frieza was no more.

--

Celebration over their victory carried on well into the evening, as the entire planet rejoiced, and the celebrations continued for almost a full Saiyan week. So eager, and full on, were the celebrations, that none noticed the mysterious absence of their Aisu-slaying prince, nor that of his mate, until a few days after the celebrations wound down. It was only then that reports trickled in of a blood drenched Kaen, in battle-worn armour, flying through the night sky in the direction of their prince's residence, well after the couple had already retired for the evening, and blast marks were found at said residence. And thus the celebrations turned to mourning, as the people bade farewell to their uncrowned king.

o-o-o

"Oh hey Kaen. Is it that time of the week already?"

"Hey Trunks," Kaen grinned down at the lavender-haired child who answered the door, "Nah, I just had a bad day and thought I'd take it out on your dad."

Trunks grinned himself, gesturing vaguely in the direction of the Gravity Room, "Well, you know where to find him." Pausing a moment, he added, "Hey, can I train with you some times? Dad hardly ever trains with me, saying I'm 'too weak', so all I've got left to train with is Goten."

"I dunno Trunks, your dad and I train in over three hundred times gravity. I'm not sure you could handle..." He paused, staring at the eight-year old, his eyes seeming to look into his very soul. Trunks couldn't help but fidget under the scrutiny, and he opened his mouth to say something when Kaen spoke up, "How long have you been able to ascend?"

The young boy gaped for a moment, than began to stutter, "I- I don't know what you're..."

"Don't lie to me Trunks. You're not very good at it," Kaen interrupted. "Don't worry, I'm not going to tell Vegeta."

This comment caused Trunks to visibly relax, and he replied, "A little while now. It just happened one day while me and Goten were sparring."

"If you can do it, I assume Goten can as well." When the young boy nodded, Kaen grinned again, "Gohan and Vegeta are in for a shock then aren't they?" Trunks also grinning again, the two started walking into the labyrinth of hallways that made up Capsule Corps. "Speaking of Goten, how come you're not with your partner in crime today?"

The scowl on the boy's face was obvious in his tone, "We're grounded 'coz of the last prank we pulled."

"You mean the last prank you dragged Goten into?"

"Depends who's asking," Trunks replied with a shrug. "If my mum, Goten's mum, or Gohan asks, we were in it together. If dad, or you, asks, then yes, it was all me." Kaen refrained from telling the boy that no one was going to believe that Goten was ever the mastermind of one of these pranks; no sense dashing his hope like that.

Mildly curious, Kaen asked, "Hey Trunks, how come you haven't mentioned anything about the shirt I'm wearing?" The pink shirt Pi had forced him to wear. "I mean, I've been copping shit all day about this shirt, and I expected you to join in."

With a shrug, Trunks just replied, "I think the shirt's cool." Kaen tripped; he couldn't have heard what he thought he did, right? Trunks, failing to notice the time-traveller's stumble as he was walking in front, continued on unabated, "Don't get me wrong, the colour sucks, but the message on front makes the shirt cool regardless. 'Sides, mum has pictures of dad wearing a pink shirt, so..."

An evil grin formed on Kaen's face as the boy trailed off, "Show me these pictures."

o-o-o

With a scream of rage, the picture frame collided with the wall with the sickening sound of shattering glass, soon giving way to gravity and joining the rest of the destroyed items on the floor. Videl Satan was angry; no, she was... she was... There was no word in any known language to accurately describe quite how she felt right now, so she was taking it out on the various items strewn about her room; granted, the only items she'd thrown were ones her dad had put in there _for_ her (or rather, for him to be able to say she had) and thus were not really _her_ belongings, but nonetheless they were remarkably valuable, being her dad's choice.

How could she have been so stupid? There was no logical explanation for why she'd let Gohan and Kaen off the hook that easily after their little display in PE. Her analytical mind had returned to her shortly after arriving home, and she'd worked out just how fucked up her logic had been; that Videl would even think using curse words was a sign of her rage, as she rarely, if ever, felt the need to use them even in thought.

Why did she ever think that their fight had proven that they weren't the city's resident superheroes? Logically, now that she thought of it, if Gohan's face _could_ stop bullets, than a punch from 'Phoenix' capable of ripping out an engine block would _not_ shatter his skull. Similarly, if Kaen _was_ capable of leaping from a four story building without injury, than a kick from 'Saiyaman' _wouldn't_ send him flying across the block with a shattered ribcage. If anything, all that fight proved to her was that if Gohan was Saiyaman, than Kaen was Phoenix, and vice versa, which she already knew. If, however, she could find proof that one of them definitely wasn't one of the superheroes, than the other couldn't have been.

Unbidden, the little voice in the back of her head she'd gotten used to ignoring (she'd worked out not long ago that this was most likely meant to be her previously unseen 'feminine side') said, 'If Gohan really is Saiyaman, will that change how you feel about him?' In all honesty, she didn't know, but she wanted to believe it wouldn't; the idea of dating the cute guy she'd gotten friends with was starting to grow on her.

On one hand, she knew she'd be very annoyed that he'd kept this secret from her (even in her head she couldn't be truly angry at Gohan anymore), and yet, on the other hand, she knew that Gohan would have a very good reason for keeping it from her, and everyone else, assuming of course that he really _was_ Saiyaman; she knew he was hiding _something_ from her, and whatever it was, it was _big_, perhaps even bigger than just being Saiyaman. If he even was Saiyaman...

She cut off her train of thought, massaging her temples; all these mental loops were giving her a headache. As she tried to clear her mind, an old saying came to her: 'When you want something done right, do it yourself'. A smile came to her face; yes, she liked that idea. Kaen could spar with his girlfriend tomorrow; she had to grudgingly admit to herself that the girl was good, perhaps even better than she herself. She was going to see, once and for all, whether Gohan and Saiyaman were one and the same, by fighting him herself. Still smiling, she walked past the pile of wreckage and headed to the training room. She wanted to be in peak form for tomorrow.

o-o-o

"Hey Bulma, how's life treating you?"

The woman looked up from her current reading material with a start; she was having a little trouble working out a problem with her current project, and she figured that some time in the sitting room might help her break through the mental block she seemed to have preventing her solving the problem. Reading while walking, however, meant she didn't notice the room wasn't empty when she walked in. Relaxing a little again, she replied, "Oh hey Kaen, didn't see you there." The flame-haired young man that looked _so_ like a younger version of her husband stood with his back to her, looking at the pictures on the mostly-decorative fireplace; he didn't look like he'd turned around once, so she assumed he could 'sense' her there, or whatever they did... "Oh not too bad. Having a little trouble with my latest project, but such is the life of a genius. Not that I mind, but why are you here?"

Still without turning around, Kaen replied, "Trunks here was just showing me the pictures you had while I wait for Vegeta."

She hadn't even noticed her son was in the room, but when he said this she noticed how he was standing; on one leg, with his other knee bent, and his raised foot resting against the knee of his other leg. A short giggle escaped her lips as she noticed Trunks using this raised leg as an impromptu seat, but Kaen obviously didn't mind the usurping of his limbs; in fact, it looked like he'd almost told the boy to sit there.

Finally turning around a little just by rotating his torso, he added, "I love this one by the way." In his hand was a picture she'd taken before Trunks was born, of Vegeta wearing the pink shirt she'd made him wear. It was at that point that she noticed Kaen himself was wearing a pink shirt; she just really wasn't with it today...

Bulma giggled a little again, "Yeah, that was pretty funny. I wanted to see if I could guilt him into wearing it. I've still got that shirt, and I still guilt him into wearing it occasionally when I can drag him out of that GR of his to accompany me somewhere. I'm going to assume that you're wearing that shirt because of something similar?" He nodded, so she commented on it no further, instead asking, "Do you want me to get Vegeta for you?"

He shook his head, a grin on his face, "No, he knows I'm here. I'm just waiting until his curiosity gets the better of him and he comes out, which should be in five, four, three, two, one..."

Sure enough, as the countdown reached the unspoken zero, the continued hum of the gravity generator that almost constantly filled the background noise of the complex wound down. Trunks quickly jumped down when footsteps could be heard approaching, not wanting his father to see him acting too childish; despite only being eight, Trunks always wanted his father to see how grown-up he could be, in an effort to make him proud.

--

In keeping with his usual style, Vegeta liked everyone in the building to know he was on the way, striding down the hall with purposeful steps ringing throughout the corridors. He hated his never-ending search for more power being interrupted, and now the brat decided to show up, but not to come to the GR? Why? He was determined to find out.

As he strode into the room he felt the boy's ki - he vaguely noticed it was what the woman called the 'sitting room' - he opened his mouth to demand an explanation, but the words died in his throat as he saw the pink shirt the boy was wearing. Chuckling a little, he instead remarked, "That's a good colour on you boy; really suits you."

"You're one to talk 'Bad Man'," Kaen quipped back, turning around with said picture in his hand, "Looks just _perfect_ on you; you should wear it more often." As he turned around full, Vegeta could see what was written across the front of the shirt, and he had to admit to himself that, despite the colour, he'd wear that shirt himself, if only so it gave him an excuse to hurt people. When he failed to reply, Kaen added offhandedly, "You know, this makes my day _so_ much better."

He glared at his 'ambassador', "Did you come here to fight, or to mock me?"

As he began stomping back to his haven in the GR, he heard Kaen reply as he started to follow him, "Can't I do both?"

o-o-o

"Mum? Are you here? It's Pi," she called out as she opened the front door. Calling out was just a curtesy of course; she had sensed her mother was home from her house, and similarly her mother could sense that it was her who'd come in (almost every Saiyan had been taught how to sense ki while onboard the Icebreaker, and those that didn't either already knew how, or were taught upon arriving on Earth).

"Pi dear, what brings you here today?" Her mother asked as she walked out of the kitchen drying her hands. Grinning, she added, "It's not my birthday is it?"

The reply was not quite what Raene expected, "Uh, I don't know, is it?"

She chuckled a little, "No dear it's not. What makes you think it would be?"

Rubbing the back of her neck a little sheepishly (a gesture she'd probably picked up from the Sons) Pi replied, "Well, I still haven't worked out when everything is in the Earth calendar; haven't really had time these past couple of months."

"Well it's not my birthday today; in fact, my birthday's not for a few months. Yours is coming up soon though; this Saturday in fact."

A surprised look came over Pi's face at this news, "Really? I didn't know that. I mean, I had a feeling that there was something important about this weekend, but I couldn't figure out what."

"It's not your approaching birthday you could feel," the voice of her father Kellre interrupted, the body soon following as the middle-aged scientist walked into the room, "It's your mate's. Saiyan couples, especially those already bonded, can feel the anniversary of their partner's birth approaching. However, as in the Saiyan calendar your birthday wouldn't be for a few more months, Kaen's not likely to sense yours. He, however, would be four Saiyan years old."

"Wait a minute dad," Pi asked, a rare confused look on her face, "You say I can sense Kaen's birthday coming? But I thought my birthday was coming, and he's born before me."

"In the Saiyan calendar yes, he's born earlier in the year than you. Exactly three months earlier in fact." Her father replied matter-of-factly. She started to realise where this was headed, but he continued before she could finish processing the thought, "In the Earth calendar, however, the two of you are born on exactly the same day. To be exact, Kaen is born one year, two hours, and thirty-four minutes before you under the Earth calendar."

"Wow." To say Pi was a little stunned by this news would be like saying water was a little wet.

"Mm hm," Her father nodded, walking over to a cabinet as he continued, "This 'feeling' you have is because, under the Earth calendar, Kaen's turning twenty. Similarly, next year when you turn twenty, he'll have this same feeling." Walking back to her, he handed her a small computer-like device he'd removed from the cabinet, "Here, take this. It's a lunar calendar Avarrdo and I whipped up when we settled in here, to make adapting easier for everyone. After ten years practice though, we're all used to the new system." He finished with a wry grin.

Pi quickly put him in his place though, as she commented, "Then why do you guys still have one?" She pointed towards the identical device sitting on the mantle nearby.

Raene answered that one, "Because your father still forgets our anniversary."

Kellre merely waved the accusation off as he started to walk away, "I never forget. If I choose to celebrate it a few days after the event, it's merely due to my own spontaneity."

Raene just laughed, "Of course it is dear." Turning to her daughter, she said, "Come, we'll talk over some afternoon tea." Pi just nodded and followed her mother back into the kitchen; never let it be said that Saiyans will turn down free food.

o-o-o

The pressure in the room was immense, attempting to crush its occupants to the floor with 500 G's of force; it was failing. The two occupants, both in their own style of training clothes, sparred seemingly oblivious to the force all around them. The spar consisted of simple hand-to-hand combat; well, as simple as hand-to-hand combat could get for a Z Fighter (the pair of them didn't really consider themselves part of the Z Fighter's family, but that was neither here nor there) Put simply, a basic spar like this simply consisted of them not using ki blasts.

Movement wasn't the only thing the intense gravity hadn't put a stop to, as the two carried on what could only be a friendly conversation, a surprising thing considering how outwardly hostile the pair were; in truth, the pair didn't hate each other as much as they let others believe, but they had an image to keep, so it was only here in the isolation only the GR provided that they could act like friends.

"You're wasting your time at that school Kaen, you know that don't you?" Vegeta asked, throwing a lunge punch at his younger counterpart's head.

"I know," Kaen replied, ducking to the side of the punch, and leaning backwards and under the follow up kick. "I didn't go there to learn anything. I went there because my mate requested me to, nothing more. Why do you think I take so much time off?"

"I thought you were practicing with your band?" Vegeta replied semi-mockingly.

Kaen just groaned, almost getting hit in the face for his troubles; he managed to catch the fist at the last second, and used the momentum to flip the prince over his shoulder. "I should've known Gohan'd tell you. Let me guess, he couldn't wait to inform you on Sunday."

"Actually, I had to beat it out of the boy," he replied with a grin, throwing himself back into the fight. "I don't know why you waste your time with weakling humans anyway."

"They're hardly weaklings Vegeta," Kaen protested, kicking the older man under the jaw with a cartwheel kick, "I mean, sure, like all untrained humans they've got a nearly non-existent ki signature, but even the girls survived two straight shots of pure oosquai without needing a trip to the hospital." The fact Vegeta stood still long enough to receive a punch to the face showed just how shocked he was. "In fact, they even sell oosquai at the club now, albeit in a mixer for the humans. Only place outside of New Saiya you can buy it."

"So that's what that was about," Vegeta muttered under his breath as the two locked up, "Still doesn't explain the band though."

Kaen just shrugged, "Everyone has their own ways of dealing with their emotions Vegeta. You screw yours up into a bitter little ball and bury them at the back of your black heart so you can pretend they don't exist. I sing. Which do you think is more healthy?" Vegeta just grumbled an unintelligible answer. "Besides," Kaen went on, "It's not like we play that crap music the humans are constantly subjected to on that stupid radio. We play hard rock. We're having this huge bash this Saturday, you should come along and have a listen yourself."

"That's a little better. I might just do that." Vegeta replied with a nod. A curious look on his face, he asked, "How is it that you can withstand five hundred times gravity, but haven't ascended yet?"

"Practice." A punch in the face was his reply. "What, you don't like practice either?"

o-o-o

"Now then dear, why'd you come over? I know it wasn't to find out when your birthday was."

"Actually, that was one of the things I came over for," Pi replied, to her mother's shock. "I mean, it wasn't the main reason, but I _was_ gonna ask dad while I was here."

"Let me guess," Raene commented sagely, "Kaen, right?"

Pi nodded, "He's just so secretive lately, and he's gotten very good at hiding his thoughts from me. He's constantly going out at night, and spending entire days doing... something, in the city, with the friends Kat told me about; the ones he still hasn't introduced me to."

The older woman chuckled, "Sounds like a very different Kaen to the boy I watched grow up. Who would've ever thought he'd make friends on his own?" Picking up her cup of tea, she commented over it, "You know, you complain about him not telling you everything, but then, you haven't been entirely open with him either have you? I know for a fact you haven't told him about those new powers you're developing."

Pi coloured, but she jumped to her defence, "That's completely different mum! In battle we're rivals, and I don't expect him to teach me everything..."

"Yes you do dear," Raene interrupted. "About a week ago you were complaining that he still hadn't taught you his Ki Fusion Engine technique, despite that being one of the only abilities that Kaen has that either you or your father can't do." Kaen didn't know, but when Kellre had examined his sword way back when he'd made it, and taught him how to use it properly, he'd also... acquired the makings of the six fires Kaen could use. Kaen had taught every ability he knew to Pi, including those that she could only use by borrowing his ki, excluding that one technique, claiming that the secret to it's use lay in the makeup of his ki itself, and merely borrowing some of it just wouldn't cut it; whether that was true, or just an excuse to keep the technique to himself, the family couldn't say, but Pi suspected the latter.

Pi just hung her head, having no retort for this, so when she looked up again she changed the subject slightly, "We hardly do anything together anymore. Other than training, if we didn't go to school together and share the same bed I'd almost say we'd never see each other..."

"Have you tried involving yourself in some of the things he does?" Her mother asked, in the sort of tone a psychiatrist would use when talking to a patient.

"What do you mean mum?"

Putting a hand to her chin thoughtfully, Raene replied, "Well, you've told me before that he stays up half the night, and occasionally goes out on the town. Have you ever thought about staying up with him? And don't give me that crap about needing your rest; you're a Saiyan, you'd be surprised how little sleep you really need." When she wanted to be, Raene could be as blunt as any of the menfolk.

Pi coloured again, "Uh, no, I haven't."

Raene just shook her head, "There you go. You're complaining that _he_ doesn't do things with _you_, but _you_ haven't even tried to do things with _him_. How do you think your father and I spend time together? You think he sits down with me and does some knitting, or cooking? No, but quite often I'll go down to his workshop and help him out; nothing too big, but time spent together nonetheless. And the more I go out of my way to be with him, the more likely he'll be to agree to go out of _his_ way for _me_. That's what being together is all about dear: compromise. I'd say I'm surprised you haven't figured it out already, but then you two did miss out on four years together, and most of the time you did have since bonding consisted of training and fighting for survival; now that that's gone, you're both still finding your feet settling into a normal life."

A genuine smile settled on Pi's face as she stood, "Thanks for the advice mum. I should probably get home before Kaen gets back from beating Vegeta's head in."

Raene stood as well, pulling her daughter into a motherly hug, "Okay dear. You wouldn't want him to come home to an empty house would you?" Pulling back, she added, "One last piece of advice: don't be afraid to ask him questions. You know as well as I do that he can never deny you anything you want; even when you were four he always gave way to your wishes. But don't expect him to give you everything; it's a two way street. If you want him to be honest with you, you'll have to be honest with him."

"Alright mum. I'll see you later." With that, Pi headed home, already thinking up how to put her mother's advice into action.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Nothing much to say, except for a sidenote: this chapter officially marks the halfway mark of this series, not counting any and all interludes. I myself am a little surprised it took until chapter 15 for Vegeta to make an appearance, but, it happens.

I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying this series thus far. I must admit I'm a little disappointed that no-one submitted a guess to what inspired the previous universe, but oh well, I'll leave it open for a few more chapters in case anyone wants to have a go.


	17. A Friendly Spar

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 16 - A Friendly Spar

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He sat down on the log that had been used as a seat, reigniting the fire with a flare of his ki, and slowly, the carcass over the fire - a fairly fresh kill by the campsite's previous two occupants - began to cook, permeating the air with it's delicious scent. The camp's previous occupants had been sparring in the low light the fire had provided, obviously killing time until their meal was ready, and the fire had quickly died when He had shown up, as had they. Perhaps remaining here for much longer wasn't a good idea, but he was hungry. 'Besides', he reasoned, 'this camp site must be secure if those two were hiding out here...'

He held his head as a memory flash hit him, letting out a soft groan; it was always hard adjusting to his newly expanded memory bank after a kill. To his shock, he 'remembered' that the two half-breeds he'd just put out of their misery weren't hiding out at all - they were camping! He growled to himself; what the hell kind of universe was this, that half-breeds were allowed free reign like that? Back on _his_ Vegeta-Sei, all half-breeds were killed on sight, to avoid them polluting the gene pool. Leaving the girl alive he could understand - there weren't enough Saiyan women for them to be picky - but the boy should've been killed before...

Another memory flash hit him, and he was relieved to find that the powers that be _had_ tried to destroy them, but had been too late. The Saiyan Council hadn't even known of their existence until the boy had been strong enough to defend himself, and the preliminary bond between them had almost been completed; they'd both been too young to mark each other when they were discovered, but too old to be separated.

With another growl, he closed his eyes to begin searching through his new memories to get a clear picture of the goings-on in this universe; he was getting sick of the scraps these flashes kept giving him. After a few moments, it all became clear, as he sorted through the jumble of the boy's memories; the girls were still locked up in The Device, where they would remain until he had enough power to bring Her back.

In this universe, Avarrdo and Kellre had remained un-mated for almost two decades longer than his own, until one day they had returned from a mission, each with a mate by their side; the names may have been different, as may the species, but even from the hazy memories he could tell the souls were still those of April and Raene. He could remember very little about the mothers, but what he could remember was that they were the last of their species, and that they both passed on before their kids reached age 1, making these two half-breeds the only two of their species to ever exist; now that species too was extinct.

Yet, somehow the father's didn't join their mates on the other side upon their death. He could vaguely remember this universe's Avarrdo saying something like "They're only dead in body", meaning that, somehow, their spirit lived on; this would explain much, as the bond wouldn't have been broken, but it left him wondering just what the women had been, if they died, and yet didn't. After that, the memories were a blur, as the two men kept their dirty little secret hidden from public eye for over 2 years; by the time they were discovered, not only was the boy old enough to be tested, but also strong enough to pass.

The test was something that existed in his world as well. Simply put, the test was the ultimate way to decide whether any half-breed that had survived the usual birth purge was worthy of living as a Saiyan. It was similar in nature to the test to determine class, but the outcome of the test was much more important; success allowed the half-breed to live and even to take a mate, failure resulted in swift death. It was only the boy's success in the test that prevented the girl being made into breeding stock, being only slightly more important than a slave due to the Saiyan blood her offspring would gain.

If his new memory served him, the boy had not only passed the test, he'd _exceeded_ the requirements for the test at least three times over; the only reason the test had stopped when it did was they'd run out of opponents for him to face, after he had utterly destroyed every second, first, and elite class Saiyan on the planet at the time, with enough energy left to go a few rounds with the king himself, and hold him off until the king was satisfied.

He now understood why he himself had such trouble taking the pair down; while they may not have been the strongest versions of them he'd encountered, the pair of them _never_ got tired. Something about their mother's species had modified their souls slightly, so that they had a near endless supply of ki. They had discovered that their internal battery _did_ have a limit, after a single spar of theirs lasting almost a week had ended with them both passing out mid-punch from exhaustion for the first time ever; usually, his new memories showed, they went to bed when their mind was tired, as their body never seemed to be.

As he finished his meal - more a snack really, but beggars can't be choosers - he stood, a grin splitting his sadistic, bloodstained face. These two would make a fine addition to his collection; the boy was number 15, and if his calculations were correct, he only needed 9 more now until he had enough power to bring Her back. Of course, this didn't mean he would stop 'collecting' after those 9; after all, what Saiyan could pass down a chance for God-like power? Pressing a few buttons on The Device, he disappeared in a hail of blue lightning; he still had 9 more souls to collect, and nothing would stop him from amassing the power he needed to bring Pi back.

o-o-o

Pi smiled to herself as she took her seat in the first class of the day - History, if she remembered correctly - despite the seat to her left, usually occupied by the guy she essentially shared a soul with, being destined to be empty today. In other words, Kaen was taking another day off; she wasn't too worried though, like she had been last time. She'd actually had a fairly good talk with him before he left.

--Flashback - about fifteen minutes ago--

"You're not taking _another_ day off are you Kaen?"

He sighed, "Yeah, I am. I've got something important happening tomorrow, and I'm yet to finish the prep work."

She stomped her foot, not noticing the concrete under her crack slightly and give way, as she barked angrily, "Damn it Kaen, I'm sick of this! Stop giving me the run around and just _tell_ me where you're going!"

He sighed again, "I'm sorry Pi, I can't. Look, I don't want to lie to you; I can't lie to save my life, and trying would only be insulting to both of us. Instead, I'm just going to ask you to trust me, and promise you that you'll know everything before the week is out; hopefully, you'll understand why when you find out."

Her angry look started to slip a little, a hopeful look trying to break through, "You promise?"

He placed his right hand over his heart, "I promise you on Korin's grave that you will know everything before midnight Friday night."

Pi gaped; she couldn't help it. Korin had been the most important person in Kaen's life - second most important since she'd taken up a major part of it - and for him to swear on him showed her he'd sooner remove his own limbs than break his promise. Slowly, a smile spread across her face, and she walked over and gave him a quick kiss, "Alright, I trust you. Just, whatever you're doing, take care of yourself, okay?"

He smiled back, donning his helmet, "Always." And with that, he sped off.

--End flashback--

She smiled to herself again, and found herself unable to stop. Friday night; that meant, at most, she had four days left to wonder what he was doing. For him to keep it a secret _this_ long, it must be very personal, and yet, he was still willing to tell her, as long as she was willing to give him time; her mother was right, as always. Before long, her thoughts drifted, as she thought of ways to put more of her mother's advice into practice.

o-o-o

He smiled to himself as he strode through the halls, heading in the direction of his usual lunch area; that had worked so well, why couldn't he have thought of it before? His stomach let out a loud roar of impatience, so he sped up his walk. It had been mid Maths that Videl had gotten a call from the police, seeking help about a hijacked school bus. Now, Gohan _knew_ she'd need help, but he also realised that him leaving class for large periods of time was starting to get suspicious, so, on the advice he received on the weekend, he employed one of the old tricks his first sensei taught him: Split Form.

The rest had gone off without a hitch; one of the Gohan's had transformed into Saiyaman and gone to help Videl save the day, and the other had returned to class. Then, as the class was ending, Gohan just had to return to the bathroom and reintegrate with his double. There were only two problems with this method. The first was the odd memory combination during reintegration; remembering being in two places at the same time was hard to get used to. The second, and largest, problem of this method was that using Split Form made him _extremely_ hungry; the feeling of two empty stomachs at once was hard to shake, even after integration. As such, he was especially eager to get some food into him, and very glad that Maths was just before lunch.

Fate, apparently, had decided he'd been having too good a day so far, as Sharpner soon appeared in front of him, cutting him off from his food and saying, "Well look, it's Nerd Boy. Didn't fall in today I see?" Gohan growled lowly to himself, but the blonde jock continued, "Just make sure you stay away from Videl Nerd Boy; she's _my_ girl! I've been going after her for years, and there's no way I'm gonna let a weakling like you have her."

With this, Gohan decided that he'd had enough; it was bad enough to cut a Saiyan off from his food, but threatening his mate - or in this case, potential mate - was crossing the line into suicidal, not to mention insulting his strength. Pointing to a trashcan behind the blonde, Gohan said mock cheerfully, "Hey look Sharpner, a distraction!"

A confused look on his face, the jock turned around, muttering, "Wha?" but was cut off by a rather violent shove to his back the moment it was turned. The resulting force sent him flying towards the indicated bin, and, as luck would have it, he slipped on a piece of paper on the ground near it (which had fallen off the nearby corkboard) and wound up flying head first into the trash can, his shoulders locking themselves in the bin, one arm pinned by his side, the other above his head, and neither in a position to give him any leverage to get out again. With a satisfied smirk, Gohan walked away, leaving Sharpner where he felt he belonged, and intending on getting some food into that furnace he called a stomach.

--

Standing there, watching the scene with Sharpner and Gohan unfold, Videl could honestly say she'd never been more confused in her life. With that one event, that put the two major males in her life as acting out of character. The first was Saiyaman, when he'd helped her out today; grudgingly, she had to admit she couldn't have done it without his help. In a surprising replay of a previous event, the hijacked school bus almost went flying off a cliff on the outskirts of town, but this time, instead of Saiyaman catching it mid-fall, like he had last time, he'd managed to stop it going completely over the edge at all.

However, the bus was one of the old school buses, with the door at the very back, and when the bus had started to go backwards over the cliff, a little girl had fallen out of her seat and hit the door, jarring it slightly. Then, when the bus jolted again as Saiyaman grabbed it, the door gave way, opening up and dumping the girl over the edge; she didn't get too far though, before Saiyaman, in a show of speed that still surprised her, dove over the edge, grabbed the girl, and made it back to the bus to push it onto the road again before it had even started to tilt.

All of that had been relatively in character, but it was when everyone was safe on the ground again that she got a shock. She expected Saiyaman, who'd worked up a reputation in her mind as being cold and uncaring, to just put the girl down and fly off; instead, he'd played around with the girl a bit, messing up her hair, talking softly to her, and even throwing her up in the air and catching her again, until she was squealing in delight, near tragedy forgotten completely. It was then that he'd set her down, patted her on the head, and flew off again.

Then, when she arrived back at school, she was again surprised to learn that, while Gohan _had_ left the room not long after she did, he returned soon after, and much sooner than Saiyaman would have been able to get back; that didn't cross him off her list of suspects though, as there's no telling what tricks Saiyaman might know. And just now, she'd seen naive, innocent Gohan, lose his temper and send the resident jock into a bin; sure, it was funny, and sure, she knew the blonde deserved it (which is why she made no move to get him out), but still, since when did Gohan act like this? All she knew was, she liked it, and so, in a very un-Videl moment, she burst out into a fit of giggles, muttering to herself, "Gohan is so funny sometimes..."

Unfortunately for the raven-haired girl, she was not as alone as she thought, as the cough from behind her attested to. Spinning around, she froze in shock when she noticed not one of her friends there, but all three of the girls, grinning at her. It was Pi that broke the uncomfortable silence, saying cheerfully, "Yes Videl, yes he is."

"You should know; you're the one watching him so closely," Kat added, her voice at least as cheerful, if not more.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Videl cried in her defence.

"Oh come on Videl," Erasa mock-whined, "Your eyes have been glued to him ever since he first came here; I can't say I blame you though..."

Videl shook her head fiercely, "I don't care about anything like that; you're crazy!" She shook her head again; even _she_ didn't believe what she was saying, so she knew they wouldn't.

A thoughtful look on her face, Erasa surprised her by muttering, "Then maybe I should go ahead and ask him out. He is pretty cute after all..."

"You wouldn't dare!" Videl snarled, surprising even herself with the depths of her anger brought on by that statement.

Pi just smirked, "I thought you didn't care?"

Videl was losing, and she knew it; all she could do was stutter, "I..I don't..."

The bubbly blonde just shook her head, shrugging her shoulders as she said offhandedly, "Well never mind, he _is_ just a bit too tall for me." Her voice took on a slightly devious edge as she added, "But then, I _do_ remember a certain friend of mine confessing she liked taller guys a while back, hey Videl?"

The pigtailed girl found she had no response for that, so she did the adult thing; she stormed off in a huff. Okay, so maybe adult was the wrong word, but she didn't hit anyone, so it was a start, right? As soon as she was gone, the three girls high-fived one another. Stage one of their plan was complete; they got the girl to the point of not even _trying_ to defend herself. Now, on to stage two...

o-o-o

Gohan smiled to himself as he began his warm-up stretches; even if it had to be kept at human levels, Gohan always enjoyed training, and, while his mother _did_ allow him to train, it wasn't _nearly_ enough in his mind. Hell, if she'd let him train as much as he wanted, he probably would've discovered another level of Super Saiyan by now, assuming one existed of course...

He paused a moment as a thought hit him; Kaen was absent today, meaning that he would most likely be by himself this time. Oh well, that didn't bother him; he'd trained by himself more times than he could count. However, it seemed that, for the second time today, fate wasn't on his side, as Videl marched up to him purposefully; inside, she was fighting hard, again, to resist drooling at the sight of Gohan in a gi, but it didn't show outside

When she paused in front of him, Gohan raised one eyebrow in her direction, asking an unspoken question, and she answered with a verbal question of her own: "Would you mind if I sparred with you today? After seeing your performance yesterday, I'm eager to see how good you really are." 'Oh good one Videl. Don't come on too strong now!' her thoughts chastised her, but it was too late now to correct herself.

Gohan, however, didn't comment on it; either he chose to ignore it, or a rare moment of Son-ness caused him to miss it entirely, both equally likely. Instead, he replied, "Sure, I guess. How come you're not sparring with Pi today?"

The girl just shrugged, "She said something about needing to help Kat with something Kaen taught them." In truth, Videl hadn't asked Pi; the girl had just supplied that excuse when Videl told her, politely, that she had another sparring partner in mind today.

Nodding once, Gohan asked, "So, should we wait for class to start, or should we start now?"

Videl dropped into her stance with a grin, "What do you think?"

Gohan grinned in kind, dropping into his own stance, saying, "You want to set up some ground rules first?"

Not taking her eyes from her opponent, Videl replied, "The four trees are the corners of the ring. No hitting below the belt. Other than that, and anything that leaves lasting damage, anything goes." Gohan nodded to himself, also not taking his eyes from Videl, in conformation; ironically, he'd begun his warm-up in the middle of four trees that were positioned in almost a perfect square.

As the two of them sized each other up, Gohan took special care to regulate his strength. 'I've got to remember she's only human,' he thought to himself, 'If I'm not careful, she could really hurt herself, because of me.' So deep was his concern about hurting her, he overcompensated in his regulations, as he found out seconds later when Videl charged forward, attacking him with a flurry of punches; he managed to block most of them, but his speed was slow enough for a few to slip through, and Gohan was very surprised to find that those punches hurt! So great was his shock that, after an especially hard punch, he lost his balance, and landed flat on his back.

Videl loomed over his, her arms crossed, "Come on Gohan. I know you're better than that; I saw you yesterday. Now get up and fight me properly."

With a quick nod, Gohan flipped up onto his hands, spinning a full circle with his legs, in an effort to put some space between him and the girl - it worked, as she jumped away to avoid being hit - before he flipped back onto his hands. Videl gave him a quick clap for his acrobatic performance, a smile on her face, but soon she was all business again. With a nod, Gohan charged forward; it was his turn now. Again, Gohan held back more than necessary, but he still put enough into his attacks to drive the girl to near the edge of their 'ring'.

Videl wasn't going down that easily though, as she leapt into a spin kick, catching Gohan off guard as her foot slammed into his chest, driving him back a few steps; when she had time, Videl would ponder just how he wasn't sent sprawling by that attack, but for now, she had more important things to worry about. When she landed again, she went back on the offensive, forcing Gohan to yield a few feet, and driving the duelling pair back to the centre. It was about this time that Gohan's instincts kicked in, as he blocked one of Videl's punches with a punch of his own.

When the blow made contact, both of them quickly withdrew their fists, but for different reasons. For Gohan, he was borderline terrified he'd hurt Videl with that move, which would lead to her becoming even more suspicious; it was a near miracle her earlier blows hadn't felt to her like punching a steel wall wrapped in down. For Videl, while her hand _did_ sting a little, she was more concerned with hurting Gohan; judging by the way he was holding his hand, she jumped to the conclusion that she _had_ hurt him.

"Are you alright?" The two of them said, ironically, at the same time, and, also at the same time, they both replied, "I'm fine."

Smiling, Gohan said, "My turn now, right?" Before she had a chance to reply, he went back on the offensive, but this time, neither of them gave an inch; Gohan felt confident he'd found the right level for fighting Videl, to make him seem a challenge, but not too much better than her. He quickly found out he underestimated her again, when she grabbed his arm, placed one foot on his chest, and fell backward, using the momentum to throw him almost clear out of the 'ring'.

Recovering quickly, Gohan charged back into the fray, but stopped abruptly when a kick was flung at his face. That was followed quickly by a spinning kick, which he leant backwards out of the way of; it was about this time that he realised he'd walked right into a trap, and it was too late to prevent the bar snapping down on his back. With a low sweep, Videl kicked his legs out from under him, sending him onto his back for the third time that day.

Lying there, Gohan came to a quick decision, 'Okay, I'm sick of losing now. She's good, very good, but it's time to finish this.' He got back onto his feet, and Videl quickly went back on the offensive, but Gohan was ready for her this time. She jabbed at him with her right, but he simply grabbed her fist with his left hand. She tried again with her left, but found it too reached a similar fate. Then, before she could react, Gohan had spun her around by the arms until she found herself, somehow, with Gohan's muscular arms around her back, almost as though he was hugging her; her own arms were crossed in front of her, her hands still in Gohan's firm grasp, but now he held her wrists, instead of her hands themselves.

Videl struggled against the hold, but not so much because she really wanted to break free; in truth, Videl was quite happy to stay there, but she had an image to maintain. She honestly couldn't remember when she'd last felt this secure, this protected, this... content. There was something about the way he held her that felt... right, and it was about that point that Videl realised her feelings for the boy - no, man - holding her were quickly escalating beyond a crush.

Gohan chuckled internally; he could see, from the look in her eyes, that she was enjoying this, much like he himself was. She seemed so fragile when he held her, and yet, so strong at the same time. However, as much as he was enjoying holding the girl, this _was_ a battle, and he _was_ a Saiyan; personal matters can always wait until after the fight. Looking down at her, he asked, "You give up yet?"

"No!" She quickly replied. She was being stubborn, she knew it, but her not giving up wasn't because she honestly believed she could still win; there was no way she could break out of this hold, and she knew it. She was just hoping that, if she didn't give up, she'd get a little more time to spend with his arms around her.

Gohan sighed, "Have it your way Videl." In a quick motion she couldn't have followed if she'd been paying attention (which she wasn't) Gohan swung her into the air, somehow rearranging himself so that he was holding both her arms in one hand, and catching her legs with his other arm; when he was done, he was essentially cradling her in his arms, and, with a nod, he began walking towards the edge of the 'ring'.

Even had he not been holding her arms, Videl didn't think she would've been able to fight back. There was something strangely familiar about being held like this, but she shrugged it off. She just let herself enjoy the feeling of being held so tenderly. However, when Gohan dropped her off, gently, outside the ring, muttering softly, for her ears only, "I win," it was like being dipped into ice-cold water; she'd lost. Videl Satan, daughter of the World Martial Arts Champion, had lost, all because she let herself get distracted.

She shook her head violently, surprising Gohan; it wasn't Videl Satan, daughter of Hercule, who had just lost that fight. It was Videl, the tomboy discovering what it was like to be a girl, that had let herself enjoy the attention of the boy she liked enough to lose. Looking up to Gohan and smiling, to reassure him she was alright, she vowed to herself that the 'daughter of the World Martial Arts Champion' would appear no longer; it was well past time she start becoming her own person.

Getting back to her feet, and brushing herself off, Videl asked, that carefree smile still on her face, "Care to go another round? I warn you, you won't win that easily next time." Gohan just laughed, and moved back to the centre of the makeshift ring, whereupon the fight started anew. 'Well,' Videl thought to herself, 'he's good, but he's no super-human. Guess he's not Saiyaman after all.' For some reason, she thought she should be more disappointed that she'd just lost her major lead to Saiyaman's identity, but she wasn't; ah, she'd worry about that later. For now, she intended to enjoy Gohan's company for as long as possible. If only she could work out why...

Her thoughts were rather rudely interrupted when Gohan's instincts kicked in again, and he caught the kick she sent his way; with a quick twist of his hands, he sent her into a mid-air barrel roll. It wasn't until she impacted rather solidly with the grass below that he realised what he'd done. Worried he'd broken something, Gohan rushed over, asking, "Are you okay?"

She shook her head; she didn't say where it hurt, but the way she held her ankle spoke loud enough. Looking up, she said, "Could you help me to the bench over there?"

Without saying a word, Gohan leant down and picked the girl up, holding much the way he'd held her before ringing her out earlier, and eliciting a yelp of surprise from her. At her raised eyebrow, he just supplied, "Figured this was easier and quicker than helping you walk there." The girl seemed to accept his answer, but in both their minds there was an unspoken second reason; he enjoyed holding her like this, and she being held.

Setting her down, Gohan went down on one knee to examine the injury. After several of the typical "Does it hurt here?" trials, he said, "Looks like just a sprain; nothing too serious." Turning apologetic, he added, "Sorry about this; I guess I don't know my own strength sometimes. Here, let me make it up to you."

Slightly startled, Videl started to reply, "Huh? You don't have to..." but cut off when Gohan started massaging her leg; she had to bite her lip to keep from moaning softly at his touch. Unknown to Videl, along with stimulating the various nerves, Gohan was also subtly using his ki to promote healing; in a couple of hours, tops, she'd be right as rain again. Of course, Gohan could have done that without the massage, but hey, he was still a guy, and what guy would pass up an opportunity like this?

For her part, Videl was in heaven; she had to use all the energy she could muster not to whimper in pleasure, as her mind lost itself in the haze his touch caused. Gohan, the boy she'd been falling harder and harder for ever since he came here, was making her feel ways she'd never expected to _ever_ feel, all from massaging her leg. 'Can it get any better than this?' she thought idly to herself.

Gohan's voice suddenly cut through the fog, "Hey, you landed pretty hard on your back before. Want me to take care of that for you?"

As soon as he said it, he began berating himself for being so forward, but Videl was far too dazed to notice much of anything, as, with a mumbled, "Uh... Okay," the girl rolled onto her stomach on the bench, and Gohan needed no further invitation; fortunately, it was a fairly new, padded bench, without a back, so it wasn't uncomfortable for her to lie like she was.

'Apparently, it _can_ get better...' she thought to herself, revelling in the feeling on Gohan's hands; she had professional massages before, but each and every one of them paled in comparison to this. Her mind's eye filled with the last image she saw - Gohan with a caring smile on his face - she let herself drift off, and as such, she didn't notice that, as soon as her back was turned, said caring smile turned into a shit-eating grin directed at every male within range. Said males glared back, almost visibly green with envy, and the females around pouted silently, both because it wasn't _them_ on the receiving end of that treatment, and because it appeared Gohan was taken, even if Videl hadn't made a verbal claim yet; they all knew it was only a matter of time...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

On the advice of my beta reader Ninja, I added the above 9-odd paragraphs; the chapter originally ended with the fight resuming, but we figured this gave Videl's feelings more time to stew.

For those who were interested, the alternate universe for chapter 14 was based on Neon Genesis Evangelion, with Pi playing the part of the brash Asuka, and Kaen the meek Shinji.

Now, I'd like to take a moment to reply to ten.noitcifnaf. First, let me start off by saying 'thank you': thank you for reading, that you for reviewing, and thank you for providing feedback in a more polite and constructive way than 'you suck'; I appreciate the politeness almost as much as the feedback itself. Having read your review, I find that I can't disagree with you on any point. Yes, I am willing to admit that Kaen and my other characters are the main focus of the story; they always were. The story was never truly intended to primarily be 'Let's see how Gohan keeps his secrets from Videl with these three around'.

As I believe I've mentioned before, the entire story idea came from watching The One, where I thought it would be interesting, to me at least, to write a story, possibly a one-shot, wherein Kaen, my favourite character from any of the pen-and-paper role-playing games I've ever played, fought a dimensional copy of himself. I realised, however, that to do this I would need to provide framework and history for any of it to make sense, which lead to the main idea for the story, with the dimensional thing being a side-plot, or: 'How would Kaen and co. deal with life on Earth after all the shit they've been through?'

This, I realised, wasn't enough to truly write a story about. The previous story I wrote about these characters had a plot that could be followed, whereas this would not. Thus, I added to the idea, the sub-plot mentioned above of 'How would Gohan handle having Kaen and co. at school with him, while trying to keep his secrets secret?' While I would like to think that Gohan and Videl are still major characters, they're 'minor' major characters, if you get my drift, while my original three are 'major' major characters. Even the next story in the series might have a bit high a focus on them, but, as it's a tournament, hopefully not as much. Time shall tell.

I also agree that, yes, the plot does seem to plod along at times, but hopefully, the latter chapters will make up for the lull in the centre. It's something I tried my hardest to avoid, but I'm no professional writer; hell, at school, English was my worst subject, creative writing especially, so you saying I have an above average writing style is praise indeed, but then, I'm a perfectionist who constantly doubts my own work, so... I also know that my beta, who keeps up-to-date on my reviews almost as much as I do, will also be pleased by your praise of his reviewing skills; I employ his services almost as much to ensure grammatical correctness as I do to overcome my self-destructive pessimism. You're also right, however, in saying there will probably not be changes to the chapters based on your review; I've already finished all of them, and don't plan on doing heavy renovation.

Now, I've probably waffled on enough, but I would like you, and my other readers, to know I do understand where you're coming from and what you're saying. I do plan on updating the summary (and, in fact, by the time I post this chapter will probably have already done so, as I decided to write this note after receiving your review, while the thoughts were still fresh in my mind, as you deserved the best reply I could give) but I will leave the Gohan/Videl tags, as I personally believe there _is_ enough of a plot around them to warrant it. If you, or any other of my readers, choose not to read on, I will just say 'you will be missed', and move on, as while I _do_ appreciate feedback, like all authors, I write for myself.

Hopefully this hasn't turned too many people off reading... Oh well, can't be helped. While this is probably not the best time to say this after my last reply, the next chapter, while probably fairly high on the WAFFy romance (I'm a terrible judge of genre...), does come in at a 'nil' on the Gohan-Videl scale. The chapter after that, however, progresses things there nicely, as did the one just finished, so, stick around and see for yourself, if you wish to do so; hopefully, you won't be disappointed.

One final comment. My beta Ninja requested I add this, having read both my above spiel and the review that inspired it, so I add it here, copied word-for-word from our conversation: "Kaen may have the appearance of a Gary Stu, but if one takes the time to read the first part of this trilogy, they can see his world shot to hell time and again. Also, as the creator of some key characters, and co-conspirator of this story, suffice to say one should keep reading if you wish to witness the next event that will tear Kaen's life in two. And I don't mean Nijuushin."


	18. Quality Time

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 17 - Quality Time

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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"I don't understand it commander. When we scanned those two they both came about at about ten thousand. How can they still be going?"

The commander just growled to himself; he didn't understand himself. This was supposed to be an easy mission - it was, after all, just 2 lowly monkeys - but everything had gone wrong, and he couldn't work out why. With another growl, he grabbed the soldier by the armour and threw him back into the fray, barking, "Stop flapping your gums! Get your useless ass back in there and kill those two." The commander himself joined in soon after, all the why wondering where these two got their strength.

--

The answer to that question was a quite simple, if corny, old quote from somewhere in the North Quadrant: 'Love conquers all'. The two Saiyans in question were a couple, and neither would allow their partner to come to any harm as long as they still drew breath. Drawing strength from each other, they remained not only still standing, but also fighting fit, despite almost half an hour of combat. It had all started when they arrived on the planet, thinking they were here on a purging mission...

--Flashback - about half an hour ago--

"Well, well, well. Fashionably late are we?"

If the flame-haired Saiyan seemed surprised by the fifty strong army now surrounding him and his mate, he didn't show it; instead, he just smirked, and replied, "Well, we _are_ the guests of honour..."

Chuckling dryly to himself, the commander spoke again, "If you give up now, I'll make sure your death is as quick and painless as possible..."

Before he could finish, a pair of battle auras flared up around the couple: one red, around the guy, and one green, around the girl. Each fired a single blast towards the gathered army, and before the light faded, two bodies hit the ground. Speaking for the first time, the girl, smirking, replied, "We choose to resist."

The commander growled, "The odds are heavily one sided you realise? 50 to 2."

"Forty-eight to two," the guy pointed out, with a hint of mocking to his voice. "It's terribly unfair I know. We should really tie our arms behind our backs to even the odds up again." A smirk broke through his face as the girl burst into laughter.

His anger getting the better of him, the commander barked, "Kill the monkeys!" and the army as a whole descended upon them; the couple just fell into stance, and the battle began.

--End flashback--

It was now half an hour later again; the battle had lasted an hour, but finally, the pair could fight no more. However, by that point, there was a single enemy left of the fifty-strong army; the commander himself. His power level stood at a hefty fifteen thousand, so even full powered one of them couldn't have killed him; together was another matter, but it was a moot point now. Raising a hand towards each of them, the man asked mockingly, "So monkeys, any last requests?" The couple just flipped him off.

Before he could kill either of them, he was incinerated by a giant red blast, which had been fired from somewhere behind them. They didn't bother trying to gather enough energy to turn around, the guy simply asking when he heard the footsteps approach, "You here for us too?"

When the being behind them muttered to the positive, the girl just held her mate close and said, "Then do what you came here to do." No more words were needed, and with one final kiss, the couple knew no more.

--

The figure chuckled darkly to himself as the fires consumed their bodies, his laughter bordering on deranged. "Just eight more to go."

o-o-o

"Hi sweetie. How was your day?"

Kaen just dumped his bag against the wall, gently wrapped one arm behind her head, and leant in for a kiss without a word. Wrapping her arms around his neck, and allowing herself to melt into his embrace, Pi thought to herself, 'Well, _this_ is an improvement.'

The kiss lasted for close to two minutes before they came up for air, but when they did, Kaen replied, a smile on his face, "_Much_ better now."

His smile soon proved to be infectious, as she asked, "Get everything done you needed to?"

Kaen's arm slipped down to hold her around the waist, and a smirk appeared on his face as he pulled her closer and replied, "Well, there's still _one_ thing I absolutely need to do today, but that had to wait until I came home..." The almost predatory look on his face, which sent her heart racing, made it quite clear what that one remaining thing he had to do was.

Giggling girlishly, she released him with one arm and poked his nose, "Well, do you think you can hold off on that last thing for a little while? I made some afternoon tea."

Still smirking, he tossed her over one shoulder, to her mock irritation, saying, "Well then, what are we waiting for? Food first, fun later."

o-o-o

"Kaen, we need to talk."

Afternoon tea had been consumed almost fifteen minutes ago now, and for fifteen minutes, Pi had looked like she wanted to say something, but couldn't work up the nerve; it had almost started to get on his nerves. Nodding once, Kaen replied, "I assumed as much. What did you want to talk about?"

It was almost a minute before Pi had regained enough of her nerve to answer, "There are some things I haven't told you..."

He shrugged, replying offhandedly, "Everyone's entitled to their secrets..."

"That's just it Kaen," Pi interjected, "I don't _want_ there to be any secrets between us." He opened his mouth to reply, but she went on regardless, "And no, this isn't about you; just the opposite in fact. You promised you'd tell me before the week is out, and I trust you. The problem is that, here you are, willing to tell me whatever I want, yet I'm still keeping things from you..."

"It's all right Pi," Kaen replied soothingly.

"No it's not alright!" Pi cried, "I remember back when we were kids, we used to confide in each other all the time, tell each other everything. I know that neither of us was really the same after the four years we missed, but I just wish we could go back to that..."

When she trailed off, Kaen stood, walking over to comfort his mate, and she threw herself into his embrace weeping silently; tears may be leaking from her eyes, but she was a warrior, and she would _not_ cry! Running a hand comfortingly through her hair, Kaen whispered gently into her ear, "It's okay, let it all out. Everyone needs to release their pain some times; it's not weak to cry." She took his words to heart, but still made no sound; she did let everything out though.

When she settled down again, Kaen pulled back a little, a gentle smile on his face as he brushed the remnants of tears from her eyes with one hand, asking, "Feel better now?" She nodded once, and Kaen slowly started stroking her cheek, before saying, "Now then, trust me when I tell you everything it all right. You say you want to be completely honest with me? Then tell me when you're ready, and not before; you were prepared to give me time, and I am more than prepared to do the same for you. We're still kinda finding our feet after missing out on four years together, but everything will work out; I can't promise it'll ever be back to how it was when we were younger, but I promise you I will do everything in my power to make you happy." A few more tears slipped down her cheek, though this time not from sadness, before Kaen gently chastised, "Now, stop that. What would your father say if he found out I made his little girl cry, huh? Are you trying to get me killed?"

She giggled slightly, amusement slowly breaking through her previous upset state, and she grinned a little mischievously, "Maybe..."

"Cheeky little thing," Kaen grinned back at her, "Always trying to get me in trouble." In a sudden burst of impulse, Kaen decided to see if she was still as ticklish as she was when they were younger; he found out within seconds that she was, by the sheer volume of laughter coming out of her. Letting her go he stood up again, pulling her to her feet moments later and saying, "So, wanna go a few rounds? I'll even let you win like I used to back when we were kids."

"_Let_ me win?" Pi amusedly barked back, mock indignantly, "I'll have you know I won fair and square!"

"Uh huh," Kaen drawled sarcastically, "_I'll_ believe you. A judge wouldn't, but I will."

"Oh you!" Pi cried, this time actually indignant, as she dug her elbow into his stomach; she might as well have jabbed him with a feather for all the damage it did, but that wasn't the point of the exercise. As the two began walking towards the DR, Pi commented offhandedly, "I could use a good workout though; Kat got me so worked up today, but she just can't take it to the next level like you can."

Kaen stopped in his tracks, an odd look on his face. She paused, turning around and opening her mouth to ask what was wrong, but he beat it to her by asking, "...We're still talking about fighting, right?"

She smacked him lightly upside the head, "Of course we are dummy!"

As she stormed off to the training room, she heard Kaen comment jokingly from behind her, "Damn, and here I thought I'd get a free show."

o-o-o

The gravity was currently set to 500, but that could quickly change, going as high as 750 G's (1 G being a gravitational pull similar to that of an 'average' planet, like Earth); one special feature of the aptly named Danger Room was that the settings could be set to a range instead of a specific value. Similarly, in a precedence set by the training room on the Icebreaker, the room also had adjustable temperature settings; said temperature was currently set at about 75 degrees Celsius, but that too could abruptly change, dropping as low as -100 in the blink of an eye.

No one residing in the dwelling had ever stopped to question how a room easily two kilometres in all directions managed to fit inside an average-sized 5 bedroom, single story house; when it came to such matters, it was better to be silent and accept what was, than to question and receive an answer you couldn't understand, but it was assumed to be some kind of extra-planar thing. There was only one-way in or out of the room; an indestructible doorway, leading to a hall in the house. Well, it was believed to be indestructible, and they didn't want to find out the hard way if that was wrong... Special dampener field generators had been installed in said doorway, to prevent anyone outside from sensing any goings-on inside; in other words, however was inside the room was safe from prying extra-sensory eyes.

Inside the room currently, seemingly ignorant of the tremendous gravitational forces acting in the room, two golden blurs danced across the endless white field; in truth, the field was more a pale, reflective blue, with occasional flashes of colour akin to an aurora across the various surfaces, but it was easier to refer to it as white. It was only within this room that these two could truly be themselves. Here, there were no expectations, no boundaries, and no limits, other than those they set themselves. Granted, these self-set expectations were often very high, but that was neither here nor there.

Where the two blurs collided, a hail of golden flashes followed, each flash accompanied by a sonic boom, as the two clashed at faster-than-sound speeds. Finally, with one might boom, the two lights separated, impacting the ground with another resounding boom each. It was then that the blurs revealed themselves as a pair of Super Saiyans, each in their respective style gi, panting roughly from exertion.

A smile on his face, Kaen called out, "You're getting a lot better, but you're not good enough yet."

A tired glare on her face, Pi barked back, "Not good enough? We're practically equal!"

"Exactly," Kaen called back, "We're equal. I won't be satisfied until you're better than me, and even then, that'll only encourage me to better myself, setting the bar for _you_ higher again."

"You're a real bastard sometimes, you know that, right?" Coming from anyone else, in any other situation, such a statement would have clearly been an insult, but from a grinning, exhausted Pi, the student to Kaen's tutor, it was the greatest compliment of his teaching method.

Grinning back at her, he replied, "And don't you forget it. Now, no holding back; I want to see your _full_ power!" Their battle auras reignited, and the dance of lights resumed again.

o-o-o

"G'Night guys. See ya in the morning."

"Night Kat," the couple replied simultaneously, grinning at each other as they realised they'd spoken as one; it was something that was happening more and more frequently. Playfully wrapping an arm around his mate's shoulder and nipping her ear, Kaen commented, "I 'spose you'll be off soon too huh?"

She shook her head, "Nope, not tonight. Tonight, I'm gonna stay up with you, doing whatever it is you do."

"Oh really?" He replied playfully, "You know I don't really _do_ anything late at night. I only stay up as late as I do because I've trained myself not to need much sleep, and..."

She silenced him by placing a finger over his lips, a smile on her face as she said, "Then you'll just have to train _me_ to run on little sleep. We don't do enough together, and I'm not taking no for an answer." He laughed, one of the deep, carefree laughs he only shared with her and his siblings, before picking her up and into his arms, carrying her off with her giggling all the while.

That was how she found herself simply lounging with her soul mate not ten minutes later. Lying there, her head resting on her mate's chest, she realised that, in the entire... what was it, three weeks so far? probably more... that they'd spent living on Earth, she'd never once just 'hung out' with her mate, as the human's phrased it; a shame, really, because after even as little as five minutes of it, she found she quite enjoyed just... doing nothing.

From what little attention she paid the TV, the show on it wasn't that bad, but then, she hadn't really spent much time watching TV though. Kaen obviously had though, as he seemed to be quite enjoying the show; of course, he enjoyed having his mate sprawled across him while the two lay on the couch, so that might've been confusing the feelings she picked up about the situation.

Suddenly deciding something, she started to say, "Kaen, I've got to tell you something. I..."

"Shh," he cut her off, a teasing smile on his face, "If you have something to say, wait for a commercial break."

She mock-huffed, but she did wait for the aforementioned commercial break when she said, "I'm ready to tell you something."

"Oh really?" He asked playfully, poking her in the ribs, "Well, don't keep me in suspense."

"Well, uh..." Pi started, somewhat nervously. However, she'd resolved to herself to not hide anything from Kaen any longer, so she strengthened her resolve and went on, "I've found some new powers developing to do with speeding up and slowing things down; must be an earth thing. I mean, they're not very powerful so far, and I can't do much with them, but..."

"I know."

To say she was stunned was a bit of an understatement, "What do you mean 'you know'? How could you possibly know?"

He chuckled deeply, his resonating chest bouncing her slightly before he calmed enough to say, "Pi, I've been training you since you were three. Did you _really_ think there was _anything_ I didn't know about your training? I've known about your developing powers ever since _you_ noticed them. Plus, you're not very good at guarding your thoughts."

Elbowing him sharply, Pi rounded on him angrily, "You mean you've known all this time, and you let me think I was keeping secrets from you? I felt really bad about that you know!"

Pulling her back against his chest, he began nuzzling her neck before replying, "Mm hm, and I know _just_ how to make it up to you..."

"Oh really?" She replied suspiciously, one eyebrow raised.

"Yup," he smirked, "see, I usually wind up taking another shower before I hit the hay - having worked up a sweat training and all - but I think it's about time we christened the spa, if you catch my drift... What do you think?"

She smirked in kind, "I think that's the best thing I've heard all night. Lead the way." As the two headed towards their private bath, she couldn't help thinking to herself, 'Mum was right. It's well worth losing a little sleep for quality time like this...'

Her thoughts were rudely interrupted by the phone, and after cursing softly in Saiyan, he gave her a quick kiss and said, "I better take this; hold that thought."

A slight smirk spread across her face as he walked off, 'He never told me to wait here...' She crept closer; not so close as to make him think she was listening in, but close enough so that she _could_ listen in. What she heard was a fairly interesting, if one-sided, conversation.

--

Growling to himself, Kaen wrenched the receiver off the phone and barked, "This had better be very damn important!" There was a slight pause as he listened to the person on the other end before replying, no less angry, "I _know_ I said this was usually a good time to ring, but today it's _not_ a good time." Another few moments silence, before "Of course we're still on for tomorrow night; why else would I have come in and spent all day preparing?" He seemed to calm down a bit before his next comment, "Look, I'm just a little annoyed, okay? This call's interrupting some quality time with my girl." After another pause, she could almost _hear_ his smirk, "Yeah, _that_ kind of quality time." He laughed briefly, before saying, "Alright man, catch you tomorrow night." With that, he hung up the phone.

--

'So, something important is happening tomorrow night huh?' Pi thought to herself, 'Well, I said I'd wait for him to tell me, but I never said I _wouldn't_ do some investigating in the mean time.' Though she felt a little bad about poking holes in her own promises like that, there was no way she was going to pass up an opportunity like this. When he came back, she didn't let on that she'd heard anything, and they continued on like nothing had happened, but inside, she was practically bubbling with excitement; she made sure to guard her thoughts, however. 'Tomorrow night huh? Watch out Kaen, you're gonna have an unexpected guest...'

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Well, not really much to say here, 'cept, as mentioned before, I've never denied Kaen and Pi being fairly central foci of my story, and the fact I've just done an entire chapter dedicated to them kinda proves that, I guess. I'm glad you guys decided to stick around though. The next chapter promises to be fairly amusing, so stay tuned.


	19. Volatile Confrontations

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 18 - Volatile Confrontations

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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"Well, well, what do we have here? If it isn't little Mickey. I've been looking for you."

The dark haired man, more a boy really, jumped in a combination of surprise and terror at the voice, turning around slowly to address him, "Uh, h-hey Mr. Kaen, sir... W-what can I-I do for you?" Scowling, the flame-haired man snapped his fingers, and Mickey suddenly found his arms in the secure grasp of a pair of burly brutes; part of Kaen's crew.

"Now Mick, see, I heard through the grapevine that you've been squealing on me to the warden," Kaen commented mock-disappointedly, "News like that makes me sad, especially after all I've done for you, and when I get sad, I get angry. Do you know what happens when I get angry?" The younger man shook head fearfully; he didn't know, but he could guess, based on the man's reputation. Kaen went on, "Mick, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. See, the warden already knows what I do around here; he always has. He also knows that the only thing keeping me in here is me; if I wanted, there's not a damn thing anyone in the entire quadrant could do to stop me breaking out. That's why the warden doesn't try to ever stop me, 'coz he knows it's easier to just give me what I want; smaller body count that way."

Mickey looked like he was almost going to piss his pants, but was too scared to even try. Smirking coldly, Kaen added, "Do you know what I want now Mick?" The man shook his head fearfully again; "I want to know who's pulling your strings; who's trying to get me in trouble Mick?"

"I-I can't tell you that! Th..they'll k-kill me!"

Kaen shook his head softly; "If that's the worst thing that happens to you today, consider yourself lucky." He snapped his fingers again, "The table." Kaen's associates dragged Mickey to the nearby table, which was balanced at a diagonal angle by a bench behind it, and threw him against it, holding him in place again. Pulling out his knife - a crude tool, he felt, but one that worked well enough when he didn't feel like doing things himself - he cut open the front of Mickey's prison-standard jumpsuit, before putting the knife away again, and starting one of his old, but effective, interrogation techniques; one of his boys blindfolded Mickey, just to make sure it worked.

"You know Mick," he began, "you can actually removes a person's heart, and they'll continue to live for at least half an hour." He placed his right hand over the guy's heart, "In the end, it's not the loss of a heart that kills you; well, not exactly. It's the blood loss - to vital areas of the body - as it all pools together, because there's nothing left to pump it around your system." He curled his fingers, until the only part of his hand touching the man's chest was his fingertips, "First, you'll start to feel a little heat, almost to the point of pain, as my hand starts to work it's way through your flesh..." Using a small amount of ki through his fingertips, he began to heat the skin, like he'd said, almost to the point of pain, before adding, "...then, when I push in, passing through your ribcage, all you'll feel is, pressure." He started to press down, his face a blank mask as he successfully hid his amusement. A cold grin broke the mask, as he commented, "Isn't science fun Mickey?" (1)

"Alright, alright," Mickey bawled, "I'll tell you anything you want to know! Just, don't kill me!"

"That's a good boy Mick," Kaen replied, removing his hand and patting him absently on the head, "Now, start talking."

--

As he sat in his cell later that night, absently smoking a cigarette as he read the book in his hand for possibly the third time, he reflected back on his life. It was true, what he'd said earlier, that he was only in this prison because he allowed himself to be imprisoned; most people asked why he allowed it then, and the only answer he had to give was that he had no where else to go. His only reason to want freedom was the reason he was in here in the first place.

About... what was it? Three years ago now? Four? Anyway, a few years ago, he would never have tolerated being here, but he also would have never been here at all. He had a perfect life, with the perfect girl by his side; of course, everyone knows that nothing perfect never lasts, and this was no exception. A high ranking officer in Frieza's army had paid a visit to the planet, and apparently, he'd taken a liking to Pi, Kaen's girl, which she didn't reciprocate; Pi had loved Kaen as much as he had her.

Now, this officer was used to getting his own way, and refused to take no for an answer, so she protected herself the only way she knew how: a ki blast, point blank, to the man's crotch. Obviously, he was rather... upset, at this, and he retaliated violently. Kaen physically shuddered, almost dropping the book, as he remembered how battered her body had been when he found it three hours later. By then, it was too late to save her, and the officer had already left the planet; the only saving grace about what happened, was that she had obviously not been... violated... by that bastard.

Needless to say, Kaen had been rather... angry... about what happened; an understatement if ever there was one. He spent months tracking the bastard down - for such a high-ranking guy, he kept a really low profile those few months - but he found him, and he wrought unholy vengeance upon him for his crime. No, not vengeance; punishment. He even waited there for the authorities to come for him, and willingly volunteered a confession about what he'd done; he felt no need to hide then, just as he still didn't now. He had brought a murderer to justice, and if that made him a murderer in kind, so be it; the trial had been a joke though. He grinned to himself as he remembered the trial; he was the only man in all recorded history to ever make a judge violently ill, as he cheerfully described what he'd done to the guy.

--Flashback - a few years ago--

"Uh, the defendant may stop describing the crime in question," the judge ordered queasily, wiping his mouth with the cloth his bailiff had brought; he still had traces of vomit on his face from his earlier... illness.

"Why?" Kaen mock-whined, "I was just getting to the good part. Where was I? Oh, right. I'd just removed the guy's heart, still beating, and had finishing turning his legs and arms into a red mush. You know, it was rather like porridge in texture, but it was red; didn't taste much like porridge either..."

"That will be quite enough!" The judge barked, looking a little green again as he resisting throwing up for a second time. "The defendant will step down now. I personally don't care if there are any more questions, I have heard enough."

"Your honour," The prosecution spoke up, "I don't see why we need this trial at all. The defendant has already confessed to the brutal, and premeditated, murder, of a high ranking Cold Empire officer."

"Don't forget that I hold no remorse over it," Kaen added, "I'd do it again in a heartbeat, although, given a second chance, I don't think I'd let him off quite as easily as I did. I reckon I could keep him alive for three hours if I had another go, instead of killing him after two."

"Kapskaen," the judge intoned, "I hereby sentence you to spend the rest of your natural life in the Kankin-Sei maximum security prison."

"Whoop-di-doo," Kaen scoffed, "You _do_ know you could never contain me if I didn't let you?"

"What's makes you so certain?" The judge asked.

With a shrug, Kaen held up the ki-restraining cuffs he was supposed to be contained with and said, "Well, I've had these off for over two hours now, and the trial's only been going for one hour, so..." Seeing the judge silently urging the bailiff out of the corner of his eye, he added, "Oh don't blow a gasket. I'm more than happy to go to that prison, at least until I get bored of it. I mean, free room, food, and all the skinheads I could want to beat up? Sign me up."

--End flashback--

He had thoroughly enjoyed killing that bastard who'd hurt his mate; removing his heart while the guy was still alive was remarkably fun, even if he did have to use his own ki to keep the guy from croaking. In the end, the only reason the guy had died was because there wasn't enough of him left to animate. He grinned to himself; other than the heart, there hadn't been enough of the guy left to bury in a matchbox, and he himself still had that heart with him to this very day, using his ki when he showed anyone so he could make it beat. Only one man had ever had the gall to try and take the heart away from him; a guard. There were two hearts now.

His thoughts were abruptly broken by the sounds of rioting reaching his ears, but he made no move to join them; why bother? Instead, he just returned to reading his book silently. It wasn't until he heard the bars being wrenched off his cell that he put the book down. He didn't bother marking his place though; if he was right - and he always was - then he wouldn't be reading it again. Seeing the face of the newcomer, he lit up another cigarette - the last he'd ever have - and asked, "So, I 'spose you're here for me then?"

The dark figure chuckled amusedly, "So, you know why I'm here?"

Taking another drag from his smoke, he replied, "Well, judging by the fact you look like me, I'd say you're from a parallel dimension. The device on your arm seems to be a crude, if efficient, dimensional flux agitator. It also seems to contain a rather crude essence collection device. That, plus the blood coating you, shows me that you're travelling across dimensions, killing people to gain their essence and make yourself stronger; killing yourself, as it was."

Nijuushin chuckled again, "Fascinating. And do you know why I'm doing this?"

He shrugged, taking another drag, "Probably the same reason I'm in here. The Pi of your dimension got killed somehow. The design of the device seems to show that it was intended as a time travel device, not a dimensional flux agitator, so you obviously intended to go back and undo her death, obviously not realising that, unless the device merely rewound time back to before the incident, with you still aware of what would happen, you would actually create a parallel timeline instead of repairing your own. However, you've made the best of what you've got, and have worked out a way to return her to life, if only you were strong enough to pull it off."

A slow, rhythmic clapping was his answer, "Well done. I _am_ impressed."

With another draw, Kaen added, "I'm also willing to bet that this journey had been slowly but surely causing a rising insanity in you, and that this is a particularly lucid moment for you. No doubt the merging of psyche's, coupled with both your own distress, and the distress of killing yourself, and being killed _by_ yourself, many times over, is slowly eating away at your mental stability; this is quite obviously a flaw in the design of the essence collector, indicating that this is a prototype, previously untested, indicating that this is one of your Avarrdo's creations."

A look of amused wonder on his face, the dimensional traveller asked, "Is there anything you don't know?"

He stubbed his cigarette out, replying, "Bovine dentistry; they didn't have any books on that in the library here, but were ordering them in for me." (2)

"You know," Nijuushin commented offhandedly, "I honestly expected more of a fight out of you, but you seem fairly resigned to your fate."

Kaen shrugged, "I got nothing left for me this side; my girl's waiting for me on the other. I can already tell that essence collector of yours won't stop me from joining her at all, because the design seems to show it takes a copy of the soul, not the soul itself. So, you do what you gotta do, and I hope my memories help you get your mate back." The two shared a friendly nod, before, in a flash of red light, only one remained.

o-o-o

Wednesday morning saw another early Chem. prac, but this week, Gohan hadn't been up half the night because of the demon children. No, this week Gohan was wide awake, and fighting hard to keep a smirk from his face. He had a perfect plan for getting revenge on Kaen for _last_ week's Chem. prac. Everything was already set up and ready to go. All that remained now was for the prac to begin.

Within minutes, the experiments were underway. The groups were almost the same as last week, except this time Kat paired herself up with Leo, leaving Erasa and Sharpner together; he could only guess how the blonde jock managed to get into this class, let alone through it, but Erasa didn't seem to mind helping him. In fact, from what he could tell, the blonde girl, who was a lot smarter than she looked, actually had a bit of a thing for her blonde lab-partner. 'Ironic,' Gohan thought to himself, 'Every pairing's a couple, or would-be couple.' He didn't try to delude himself into thinking he and Videl didn't fit this mould; he knew he liked her, and could tell she felt something back, but neither was willing to bridge the gap for their own reasons.

Putting this out of his mind, Gohan returned to the prac. The experiment was supposed to be a minor chemical reaction, mixing two harmless chemicals and recording what colour it changed to, then comparing this with it's chemical composition, before repeating it with another chemical pair; basically, boring work Gohan could do with his eyes closed, and his hands tied behind his back no less. He had, however, slightly... altered, the chemicals at Kaen's workstation. All he had to do was wait until that pairing was reached...

He didn't have to wait long, as within moments of the thought, he noticed the two altered chemicals being mixed; the pairing he'd replaced it with was a little more unstable, as evidenced by the fact it burst into flame. This, in turn, set off the sprinkler system, and as _ahem_ 'luck' would have it, Gohan's worktable was under the only sprinkler in the room that was... 'malfunctioning'.

It wasn't until the sprinklers had unloaded their cargo that it became obvious just how deep Gohan had taken this prank; the water in the system had been mixed with, of all things, pink dye. It was a dye that would wash out of course - Gohan may have liked to prank people, but he never did anything permanent - but, nevertheless, that left everyone in the room, bar he and Videl, soaked with pink water.

After a few minutes of stunned silence, Videl burst into laughter, but Gohan refrained himself to a shit-eating grin; fortunately, being at the back of the room, it wasn't instantly obvious the two hadn't been affected. Mr. Dalton (their Chemistry teacher) rounded on Kaen, barking in an angry, but good-natured, tone, "Mr. Avarrdo, what did I tell you about creating a scene in my classroom? Fortunately, nothing needs repairing this time, but did you really have to cause _another_ disaster?"

"Oh come on sir," Kaen complained, "This is _so_ not my style. Why would I target myself?"

The teacher opened his mouth to reply, but the truth of the statement hit him suddenly. Turning thoughtful, he instead replied, "Hm, you have a point. Well then, do you know who did it?"

"There's only one man I know with the smarts to pull this off," Kaen growled, glaring at Gohan, "And he seems to be the only one not affected by it too."

With a sign, Mr. Dalton asked, "Mr. Son, do you have anything to say in your defence?"

Still grinning to himself, and noticing absently that Videl had reduced to quiet giggles instead of full-fledged laughter, Gohan replied, "Yes, yes I do sir." He paused, smirking at Kaen, "Payback's a bitch!" Videl burst into laughter again.

o-o-o

Videl threw her bag down as she entered the bathroom, waiting a few moments to make sure she was alone before splashing cold water on her face. There was something terribly wrong with her, and there were two obvious causes. She was Videl Satan, volunteer police officer, hero of Satan City, a tomboy who was sure of everything she did, yet here she was, utterly confused internally, because of, of all horrors among horrors, two boys; well, men, probably, but that's just a word and nothing more. Son Gohan, and Saiyaman.

When she could tell herself that Gohan and Saiyaman were one and the same, life was much simpler; she was crushing on Gohan something fierce, a fact she admitted to herself, and thus any confusion she might have felt towards Saiyaman was just a reflection of those feelings. However, after finding out in PE yesterday that the two of them couldn't be the same, she didn't know what to think...

Both of the major men in her life were _not_ acting like she expected them too; annoyingly, now that she found out they were two different people, they seemed to be acting as though they _were_ the same. In her mind, Son Gohan was a self-confessed bookworm, fairly meek and mild, who excelled at everything he did, and appeared to be bored doing so. Well, given his performance in PE, she should probably say he was an all-rounder, but he wasn't one to show off; however, he also wasn't one to back down from a challenge, even if the challenge _required_ him showing off.

Saiyaman, however, _loved_ to show off; why else would he wear that gaudy green tunic, red cape, and orange helmet, if not to stand out and make sure he was noticed? He openly flaunted such super-powers as faster-than-sound speed, firing lasers from his hands, super-human strength, being bullet-proof, etc. He was brash, brazen, and _so_ chauvinistic and patronising at times that she wanted to break his teeth, assuming she _could_. Now, it seemed, they were breaking character.

Yesterday, she had seen innocent Gohan get angry and hurl Sharpner into a trash can, without his expected reaction of apologising and helping the boy out, if not ignoring him entirely. She had also seen cold-hearted Saiyaman molly-coddle a small girl to help her forget a near tragic event, instead of just setting the child down and flying off without a word. Today, Gohan had shown a third side of himself; his playful, humorous side. And, remembering back to the call-out she'd attended earlier today, so had Saiyaman.

--Flashback - earlier that day--

The call had been fairly routine; the standard bank robbery, handful of gunmen, incompetent cops, etc. Of course, Saiyaman had shown up to help, and, of course, he'd shown her up without even trying. This time, however, the stalkerazzi had arrived before the caped hero could fly away, and began asking him questions. They didn't get the answers they expected though... The conversation had gone something like this:

Reporter: "Saiyaman, please tell us more about you! Where you're from? What brought you to our fair town?"

Saiyaman: "Oh I'm sorry, I don't speak English."

Reporter: (confused) "If you don't speak English, how can you understand it well enough to reply in it?"

Saiyaman: (smirking) "Well, I'd explain, but as I said, I don't speak English." (3)

With that, Saiyaman had flown off, leaving the confused reporter standing there like an idiot, and Videl on the verge of tears with laughter; she'd have to remember that line the next time she got 'interviewed'.

--End flashback--

That was how she found herself, in the school bathroom, killing time until the final class of the day. "I just don't get it..." Videl muttered to herself, examining her reflection as though she expected it to answer her, "I've never noticed _any_ guy before. How is it I find myself attracted to _two_ guys at once?"

"Aha!" A voice declared behind her; Erasa's voice if she didn't miss her guess. "I _knew_ it!"

"Gah!" Videl cried, spinning around; she'd been so busy lost in thought she'd never noticed the girl come in. Racking her brain for an excuse, she said, "Look Erasa, I'm not sure what you think you heard, but..."

"Oh don't even _try_ and talk your way out of this one girl!" Erasa interrupted, "I know _exactly_ what I heard; I heard a miracle. I was almost beginning to think the rumours about you not liking guys were true." Videl opened her mouth to shoot back with a few not-so nice words, but she paled as Kat and Pi entered, and Erasa instantly exclaimed, "You are _never_ going to believe it, but I just caught Videl admitting she liked _two_ guys."

Videl paled even further at the identical grin that spread across the other two girls' faces; if she didn't know any better, she'd almost say they knew who she liked. 'Well,' she thought to herself, 'they probably do, or Pi probably does at least; the girl _did_ say she knows everything, and I'm yet to see her ever bluff.' Videl opened her mouth again to try and explain her way out of the mess she'd fallen into, but the questions started flying think and fast; so fast, in fact, that she never had time to work out who asked them, let alone answer.

"Who is he?"

"What's he like?"

"Is he tall?"

"Does he go to school here?"

The questions continued coming, until Erasa, in a rare showing of intelligence, commented slyly, "Is this cities former number-one crime stopper falling for our newest hero Saiyaman?"

Kat almost seemed to have stars in her eyes as she cooed, "Oh how romantic; the super hero couple. Are you going to become a crime fighting duo now?"

"What about Gohan?" Pi mused, "You seemed to be quite smitten with him lately..."

It was about then that Videl decided it was a lost cause, and fled, as fast as her legs could carry her; blushing madly, and stammering an excuse she couldn't remember if she tried, she grabbed her backpack and started running. Unfortunately, in her mad hurry to escape, she didn't see the flesh-covered brick wall she slammed into.

Reaching a hand down to pull her up, Gohan asked concernedly, and with all the Son in him, "Hey Videl, I didn't see you there; are you alright? What's the rush?" Videl was too embarrassed to reply; it was bad enough to be caught talking about liking the guy, and given the third degree to boot, but to run into him during _another_ lapse in concentration? Fortunately, she was saved from answering by the ringing of the bell. Uttering a mild curse under his breath - something the raven-haired girl didn't think he was capable of - he grabbed her hand again, saying, "Come on Videl; we'll be late to class." He started running, and she had no choice but to keep up or be dragged. The girl was so lost in thought that she didn't notice the grin that came across Gohan's face when she didn't try and break free from the gesture.

'It's only a matter of time,' Gohan thought to himself. 'Once I know for certain how she feels, then I'll ask her. I just hope I can work up the nerve...'

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Behold my inspiration for several of the bits above, as noted. See them, learn them, love them. I know I do.

(1) This scene is quite blatantly ripped off from The Punisher movie

(2) This comment was pilfered from a web comic called Casey and Andy at galactanet(dot)com(backslash)comic(backslash)index(dot)htm. The character Quantum Cop, to be exact.

(3) This short scene was shamelessly stolen from another web comic called 8-Bit Theatre, located at www(dot)nuklearpower(dot)com


	20. A Bard's Life

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 19 - A Bard's Life

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He walked out to the microphone, illuminated by a single spotlight, amidst the roar of approval from the crowd. A grin on his face that only those close to the stage could see (well, and the cameras, but he'd long since learned to tune those out), Kaen picked the mike up, saying to those assembled jokingly, "You guys just don't know when enough is enough do you?" There was a roar from the crowd. "So, you want some more do you?" A massive roar of approval echoed through the arena, and he waited until it died down before continuing; "Well, alright then. But just _one_ more, you understand?"

With this, the other lights on the stage came back on, revealing the other four guys still on stage; his band. Well, three guys, really, thanks to a little technique of his; a lot of people always found it slightly unnerving that he was both the lead singer, and guitarist, without being a guy, holding a guitar, who sang. The technique was simple enough, to him at least; through the use of astral projection, he created a second version of himself, purely holographic in nature, and, with a little help from some telekinesis, gave the image the ability to manipulate objects.

To top it all off, through some telepathic ventriloquism, he could even give it a voice, or a second voice for himself; he found it amusing to speak out loud _and_ telepathically at once, if only to throw people off. However, he had very little control over his body while using this technique, so he left it to simple tasks the could be, basically, programmed in; like playing a tune he knew by heart on the guitar. He supposed that the technique might have some uses in combat, but he had long ago forsaken his warrior roots; fighting may have been in his blood, but it wasn't in his soul, and fortunately, his mate had understood. She understood enough to become his manager.

The music began anew, the band starting to play their final song for the night, and it short order it drew to a minor peak before dropping off to a mostly drumming background as he immersed himself in singing softly, "I'm tired of being what you want me to be, feeling so faithless, lost under the surface. I don't know what you're expecting of me, put under the pressure, of walking in your shoes..."

The second guitarist (the one not him), who was also the backup singer, joined in with his line, "Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow."

"Every step that I take is another mistake to you..."

Again, the backup singer added his line, "Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow."

As the music built up to another peak, he closed his eyes and broke into the chorus, his words raw with emotion as he sung, "I've, become so numb, I can't feel you there, become so tired, so much more aware, I'm becoming this, all I want to do, is be more like me, and be less like you."

Forcing his face to relax, he opened his eyes again and started the second verse, his voice having more of an edge to it than before; "Can't you see that you're smothering me, holding too tightly, afraid to lose control, cause everything that you thought I would be, has fallen apart right in front of you..."

Again the backup singer's voiced joined in, "Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow."

Kaen: "Every step that I take is another mistake to you..."

Backup singer: "Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow."

Screwing his eyes shut, he almost screamed into the mike, "And every second I waste is more than I can take!" With that, the chorus started again; "I've, become so numb, I can't feel you there, become so tired, so much more aware, I'm becoming this, all I want to do, is be more like me, and be less like you."

As the music started building to a new peak, higher than before, the jumble of emotions started coming thick and fast, as his mind's eye was flooded with images he'd rather forget, his eyes still closed as he sang, again almost in a shout, "And I know, I may end up failing too... But I know, you were just like me with someone disappointed in you!" Again, the chorus began; "I've, become so numb, I can't feel you there, become so tired, so much more aware, I'm becoming this, all I want to do, is be more like me, and be less like you."

Finally, the song started to wind down, the final words of the song ringing through, from both lead and backup singers:

Kaen: "I've, become so numb, I can't feel you there..."

Backup singer: "Tired of being what you want me to be."

Kaen: "I've, become so numb, I can't feel you there..."

Backup singer: "Tired of being what you want me to be."

With a final few seconds of notes, the song drew to a close. Opening his eyes, and letting out a sigh of relief, he gave his usual 'thank you and goodnight' speech, before the band as a whole headed backstage; another concert completed successfully. Pi was waiting for him as soon as he got backstage, and the second he and his guitar-playing double reintegrated, she threw herself at him, kissing him for all she was worth.

Pulling back what _had_ to be at least a minute later, she smiled at him and said, "You did great out there tonight Kaen."

Grinning back at her, he replied, "Don't I always?"

She sighed overly dramatically, "Such ego, whatever am I going to do with you?" Turning serious, she poked his chest and said, "Now, what was with all those negative emotions before hm? I know it had something to do with the song, but what?"

He sighed, his arms tightening around her before he replied, "I just... I just wish everyone else took it as well as you did." She nodded once in understanding, holding him close again. Both his and her parents had taken the news about his chosen career a little... less than approvingly. They had essentially said that he had to choose between his family, and his passion; not an easy choice, and one he lived with every day, but one he wouldn't change for anything. As long as they had each other, then all was well...

Unfortunately, all was quickly proven _not_ to be well; the scream was the first sign, the body flying past his field of view the second. Before he could react, there was a rather violent impact with his back, sending him and his mate flying; she landed rather heavily on her back, uninjured but dazed, but he managed to spin himself to land on all fours. Looking up at who'd attacked him, he found himself almost gaping at what he saw.

With a growl, the bloodstained man before him barked, "Look at you; weakling. You're an insult to your warrior heritage!"

"What are you, my conscience?" Kaen quipped sarcastically; his reply was a kick to the head, which he managed to dodge by splitting into two, and each half diving in a different direction. Reintegrating once he stood up, he said, "Look, I've already had this from my parents. The last person I need another lecture from is me."

"I don't care what _you_ need; this is about what _I_ need," the bloodstained Kaen look-alike replied. "I _was_ going to just kill you for my own selfish purpose, but now, I think I'll be doing a favour to the Saiyan race as a whole." He charged a powerful blast, one that Kaen knew was futile to dodge; he hadn't trained in a long time, and, as luck would have it, he wound up directly in front of the prone Pi, thus dodging would mean her life instead of both of theirs. A cold smirk on his face, the alternate Kaen remarked, "Oh, and don't worry. I'll put that technique of yours to good use."

Before Kaen could think of the implications of this statement though, the blast was fired, and the two Saiyans incinerated, leaving behind only burn marks to show they were ever there. With a near insane cackle, the second Kaen vanished in a hail of blue lightning, his final words echoing through the room; "Just six more to go."

o-o-o

Pi growled to herself as she flew silently above street level; if anyone looked up, they might be a little shocked, but it was late at night, and there was almost no one around anyway, so she wasn't too worried. She'd followed Kaen into the city, intending on finding out where he went of a night, but she lost him. She'd kept a reasonable distance from him, keeping her ki low enough so he couldn't track her, and using her ki sense for keeping track of _him_, when he suddenly... disappeared; she could only assume he'd put on a ki suppressor, like he had on Saturday, which, she assumed, was so he couldn't be tracked.

She'd managed to find the area she last sensed him in, but all she could see were closed businesses. There was no sign of his car, or his bike, but she assumed he kept those in their capsules when not in use. Suddenly, her ears picked up the sound of music nearby, and, following it, she found the only place open in a three-mile radius. Setting down in an alley, where she made sure not to be seen, she slowly strode into the place; the sign nearby, she noticed absently, read 'Club Chaos'.

Inside, there were, she'd guess, close to three hundred human teenagers, some sitting at the tables strewn about the place, but most standing around what she assumed was a stage; annoyingly, she was a little too short, and a little too far away, to see the stage, but the loud music, which almost hurt her sensitive ears, was coming from there, so she assumed it was a band up there.

Pushing her way through the throng of humans, she made her way over to the most likely place to find Kaen; the bar. Unfortunately, he wasn't there, but she sat down anyway to try and work out where he might be. She didn't understand it; even if Kaen did come here, why would he? Obviously there was something important happening tonight - the conversation she overheard last night showed as much - and she thought that following him would lead her to that important event, but instead, it lead here; why? She didn't know, but the music wasn't making it easier for her to sift through her thoughts; she was imagining things now, imagining she could hear Kaen's voice taunting her, saying 'Stupid girl', over and over again...

'Wait a minute!' She thought to herself, as she noticed the music dim, but Kaen's voice still coming, 'I'm _not_ imagining that, which can only mean...' Spinning around, she got a good look at the stage for the first time, and her jaw nearly fell off her face. There, up on the stage, with a guitar slung over his shoulder, _singing_ into a microphone, was her bond mate. 'Is this what he was doing...'

The song wound down, and as a roar of approval erupted from the crowd Kaen grabbed the microphone from the stand and cried, "Thank you, and welcome all. I see a lot of regulars out there, but I notice some new faces too." At this point, Pi was glad to be a little shorter than normal, as she disappeared into the crowd; she didn't want to be noticed, she wanted to surprise him. Obviously, she was successful in hiding, because Kaen went on, "Well, we only have one rule here in the House of Chaos, so remember it well: we cater to everyone's taste..." A massive grin split his face before he added, "...as long as your taste is Rock!" Another roar of approval erupted. "Well then," Kaen grinned, "let's get this show on the road!"

Kaen and his band began playing again, and as Pi sat there, she found herself fill with a silent wonder. 'Wow, he's really good...' She thought to herself, again making sure to guard her thoughts, 'I wonder why he couldn't tell me he was doing this... Was he... ashamed... of it? No, that doesn't seem like Kaen... Then again,' she thought wryly to herself, 'I can't say him playing in a band seems like the boy I grew up with. Explains a few things though...'

Her thoughts cut off as the music stopped temporarily, and she heard Kaen announce, "Alright then guys, we're gonna take a short break, but before we do, I figured I'd give you guys a treat." He waited for the murmurs of the crowd to die down before saying, "A brand new song, never before played in public." The crowd let out a cheer, but Kaen's good-natured voice broke over the noise, "Now, if you don't calm down, we can't exactly play it can we?" He might as well have pressed the 'mute' button; utter silence descended on those assembled.

Pi was slightly surprised to see Kaen unfurl his tail from around his waist, and use it to drag a nearby stool over, which he sat down on; the crowd made no mention, so obviously this was normal for him. Adjusting the microphone stand, Kaen said, "Now, this is a little more slow than my normal stuff, but I'm sure you'll like it. It's titled simply 'Cold'." He tapped his foot a little, obviously getting the rhythm, before he started singing in tandem with the commencement of the music.

"Looking back at me, I see that I never really got it right. I never stopped to think of you. I'm always wrapped up in things I cannot win. You are the antidote that gets me by; something strong, like a drug, that gets me high..."

Pi was amazed by the passion in his voice as he sung; it was obvious to her that he was singing from his heart. Somehow though, he managed to keep her feeling anything through the bond; apparently, he was _very_ good at hiding his thoughts. What she assumed was the chorus began, as Kaen was joined in his singing by the pony tailed guy beside him, who also had a guitar slung across his person; unless she missed her guess, that guy was Hawk.

Kaen: "What I really meant to say, is I'm sorry, for the way, I am..."

Hawk: "I never meant to be so cold... Never meant to be so cold..."

Kaen: "What I really meant to say, is I'm sorry, for the way, I am..."

Hawk: "I never meant to be so cold... Never meant to be so..."

The music picked up again, as what could only be the second verse began with Kaen finishing Hawk's line; "...cold to you, and I'm sorry 'bout all the lies. Maybe in a different light, you could see me stand, on my own again, coz now I can see. You were the antidote that got me by; something strong, like a drug, that got me high..."

The chorus began again, and this time, Pi could feel the cracks developing in the wall he's erected around himself. She could feel the pain in his heart, which she heard in his voice, starting to filter across their mental link. She realised abruptly that he'd written this song about her; or rather, _for_ her.

Kaen: "What I really meant to say, is I'm sorry, for the way, I am..."

Hawk: "I never meant to be so cold... Never meant to be so cold..."

Kaen: "What I really meant to say, is I'm sorry, for the way, I am..."

Hawk: "I never meant to be so cold... Never meant to be so cold..."

The music seemed to be winding down, the only people left playing being Kaen and Hawk, before Kaen sung, "I never meant to be... so... cold..." and broke into full swing, backed, she absently noticed, by the drummer. When the other's started again, so did the lyrics, "I never really, wanted you to see, the screwed up side of me that I keep, locked inside of me so deep. It always seems to get to me..." With a gasp, Pi felt the wall break down completely, and all the feelings in Kaen's heart come flooding through. She fought back a sob at all the pain she felt, and absently realised that this pain he felt for her; inside, he was punishing himself for hurting her way back when.

The song continued, but this time, it was Hawk singing "I never really, wanted you to go. So many things you should have known. I guess for me there's just no hope... I never meant to be so cold..." As the verse finished, the chorus began again, for the last time.

Kaen: "What I really meant to say, is I'm sorry, for the way, I am..."

Hawk: "I never meant to be so cold... Never meant to be so cold..."

Kaen: "What I really meant to say, is I'm sorry, for the way, I am..."

Hawk: "I never meant to be so cold... Never meant to be so cold..."

The song faded out, and no sooner it ended than the crowd erupted into cheering and applause, and Pi found herself joining in. With a wave to the crowd, Kaen and the band headed backstage, through a door she noticed against the wall. Continuing her gaze along that wall, she saw another door, this one further away from the stage; obviously, this was meant to get into the back room, which _then_ lead onto the stage. Pi smirked to herself; now was as good a time as any to surprise him.

o-o-o

Kaen walked over to the fridge, pulling out a few cans and tossing them to the guys before saying, "Did you see the crowd out there? It gets bigger every night."

"Eh, not every night," Condor replied, "Just every night you're here; without the live band, the club's a little slow."

"Yeah, things have really been lookin' up ever since we met you dude," Eagle added, a grin on his face, "The ol' buzzard was worried he'd have to shut the joint down a while back, but then, low and behold, our saviour appeared, driving out the criminals and drawing in the mon-eh!" He pumped his fist in the air cheerfully as he made his dramatic declaration, but then, that was classic Eagle; he always acted like he was still 13.

Hawk decided to add his two cents, "Really man, life hasn't been the same since you walked into the club. I know we've only known you a couple of weeks, but it's like you're family Phoenix."

Kaen rolled his eyes good naturedly, "If you say so Hawk; I will admit, this place does feel kinda like another home. Just don't get mushy on me and start bawlin' or nothing."

Cracking open his drink and downing a mouthful, Hawk replied, "No worries there man. Say, I had a question: What's the deal with that song anyway? I mean, you never did explain it to us."

Kaen sighed, throwing himself into his chair; unfortunately for him, the back of said chair was facing the door to the club, so he didn't see it opening. The guys leaned forward in their chairs, making to rise, until the figure that entered silently indicated to not reveal it's presence, so they hid it as eager attentiveness as Kaen replied, "I wrote it for my girl. I guess you could say it's my way of apologising for all the shit I put her through, even if she's not here to hear it..."

"Oh I heard it alright," the figure behind him replied, with an obviously female voice. Kaen jumped out of his chair in shock, whirling around to find himself face to face with his mate, who was obviously torn between being amused, and irate, judging by her expression.

Kaen, in a rare moment, suffered a total mental lockdown; he had a perfectly reasonable explanation planned out, but it slipped away like fog under sunlight. All that came out of his mouth was, "Uh... It's not what it looks like..."

"Oh really?" She replied, stalking forward; somehow, her tone conveyed that same mix of what should have been conflicting emotions. "I've been here for almost half an hour Kaen. From what I've seen, you're spending your nights playing guitar in a club, and singing as well..." The amusement won out for a moment as she added, "Singing quite well I might add..." The precarious balance was back as she finished her statement, standing almost nose-to-nose despite her shorter stature, "If that's not what it looks like, then what is it, hm?"

He opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Slumping his shoulders, he said defeatedly, "You got me."

"So _this_ is that big secret you've been keeping from me." It was more a statement than a question, but he nodded anyway. Pressing on, she asked, "Why couldn't you just tell me Kaen? Was it really so bad? Are you... ashamed... of this?" She really felt she had to know his answer, especially to that last question, but she wasn't about to let on why.

"Ashamed?" Kaen replied, somewhat unsteadily, but he continued, "No, not really. Regardless of what you, or anyone, thought, I'd probably still do this. I guess I was just... worried, I 'spose, that you'd think less of me for it. After all, we're of warrior blood, and warrior's don't sing." Pi could see, out of the corner of her eye, the other three guys open their mouth to say something, but before they could, Kaen, seemingly anticipating their reply, pointed a finger at them without turning around and saying, "The first one who makes a bard crack dies; remember, you're replaceable."

The statement was lacking the sort of heat she expected of Kaen, seeming to show, to her at least, that it was an idle threat; they did, however, close their mouths, if only for a moment. A few seconds later they went to say something else, but Kaen again cut them off, saying, "No, she is not a muse; this is Pi. Know her, respect her, and fear my wrath should you fail the above two tasks."

A wide smile filled each guy's face, but it was Hawk who spoke; "So _this_ is the Pi we've all heard so much about." He moved forward, obviously intent on shaking her hand and commencing the greetings, but Kaen cut him off.

"Not now guys; the crowd's getting restless, so we better get back out there." All of them, even Pi, looked a little disappointed, so Kaen added, "Look, I doubt she's going anywhere in a hurry, and there'll always be time after the gig to get to know one another. Assuming we get out fast enough..." The guys hurried to get their stuff, and before they all headed out, Kaen pressed something into Pi's palm, gently closing her fingers around it and saying, "Why don't you wait by the bar and hang out; give this to the bartender if you want a drink. Just say Phoenix gave it to you." She nodded, exiting through the main door, as Kaen headed back out for round two. He stopped short, however, turning back with a curious look on his face as he asked, "Say Pi, how'd you find me anyhow?"

She just smirked to herself as she started to walk out, replying, "Dear, you may have spent four years running, but _I_ spent four years chasing."

o-o-o

To Pi's irritation, the band didn't come out straight away; obviously, they still had something they needed to do backstage. Either that, or they were building suspense to get the crowd worked up; in any case, she amused herself by running the object Kaen had given her between her fingers - a gold-coloured bottle cap, she noticed - as she mulled over the happenings thus far. Her thoughts were interrupted, however, by a gruff voice from behind her saying, "Don't think I've ever seen you in here before miss. Would you care for a drink, or are you just sitting here for the ambience."

She spun around to give him a piece of her mind - assuming, for a moment, that he'd been hitting on her - but stopped when she noticed the obviously grizzled man behind the counter of the bar, a cloth over one shoulder. Instead, she replied, "Yeah, I wouldn't mind a drink actually. Kaen - uh, I mean Phoenix - told me to give this to the bartender, who, I assume, is you." Saying this, she handed the bottle cap open.

"S'okay miss," the guy replied, "I know Phoenix's real name." He paused a moment as he looked at what she'd given him, before asking slowly, "Phoenix gave you this, and told you to give it to me?" When she nodded, he let out a short, surprised laugh, before walking to one of the nearby fridges she could see as he said, "I guess I should be honoured then..." Returning with a fairly ordinary looking bottle, which had a cap like the one she'd handed over, he added, "You're my first Saiyan customer, bar Phoenix himself, since we started sellin' the stuff, and he doesn't really count anyway, 'coz he works here." She opened her mouth to protest, but he waved her off, saying, "Don't worry, we here of the Club Chaos family already know everything about him; he had a great time regaling us with his stories over a few drinks."

She grinned, "Yeah, that sounds like Kaen alright." Popping open the top and taking a swig without checking exactly what it was, she nearly spat it out as the shock of what it was registered to her moments after the taste did." Swallowing quickly, she cried, "Oosquai? You guys sell oosquai here? But, how... why..."

The bartender shrugged, "Couple of the boys 'round here got a taste for it after Phoenix dared the group to take shots of the stuff. The gold cap bottles like you've got are the pure stuff; we don't stock much of that, because so far only Phoenix has had any. We also have another bottle of pure stuff for those who want shots, but we make sure us normals don't OD on the stuff. Finally, we sell it in a mixer, heavily watered down by soft drink, again for us normals; those ones have silver caps." A grin on his face, he added, "We're the only place outside of New Saiya that stocks oosquai, and I'm tempted to advertise as much." He shook his head a moment as something occurred to him, and he held his hand out, saying, "I'm sorry, where are my manners. I'm Vulture; this here's my club, and I figure, if you know Phoenix, that I'm gonna be seein' a lot more of ya, so I might as well introduce myself."

A grin on her face, she shook his hand, replying, "Here's hoping; I'm Pi, by the way."

A look of shock hit his face, as he stammered, "Pi? THE Pi?" She nodded, but before either could get another word out, Kaen and the rest of the band came back on stage, as the roar from the crowd proved.

Raising a hand to silence the crowd, Kaen spoke into the microphone, "Thanks guys, it's nice to be appreciated. Now, before we get under way again, I'd like to direct your attention to the dark haired girl at the bar, near the ol' buzzard." When nearly every eye in the place turned to her, Pi almost felt the need to fidget, but she kicked it down. Kaen spoke again, redirecting the attention back to him; "Before any of the testosterone junkies in the room get any ideas, I feel I should point out that she is _my_ girl, and any attempt to change that will resort in a violent, and extremely painful, castration and/or death."

Grinning, Pi decided to add to that statement, calling out, "Yeah, and after I'm done with you, I might even let Phoenix have a go!" The band broke into laughter, as did the bartender, and, she idly noticed, possibly half a dozen other people seated together off to the side; Kaen just grinned broadly.

"With that out of the way," Kaen declared, "let's get this party started again. One, two three, GO!"

With that, the music started again, and as Pi sat there listening, she found herself liking it more and more; she didn't know whether it was the fact Kaen was playing it, or whether it just appealed to her, but there was most definitely something... raw, and primal, about the music. The first song they played (as Kaen was kind enough to inform her telepathically) was called 'Step Up', but she could have guessed that from the lyrics. The second, however, she would have never guessed; it was called 'Prince Charming'.

It was obvious to her that he'd written those two songs himself, along with that song he'd played before she surprised him; well, she knew for a fact he'd written that one, but in any case, she could tell which one's _he_ had written, and which one's he hadn't, by how he sung them. She didn't think anyone else would have been able to pick up on it, but his voice was more emotional with the songs he wrote than with the others; she expected as much, as Kaen seemed to be using his songs as an outlet for his emotions.

After the first song or two, Pi found herself with the growing desire to join in; most of these songs were obviously ones he'd played before, as the crowd seemed to know the words well enough to sing along. Thankfully, as soon as Kaen noticed this desire in her, he helped out by sending her the lyrics through their bond, and before long, she was joining in just as enthusiastically as everyone else there.

o-o-o

"Guys, I'd like you to meet the light of my life, and the reason I get up every morning." Pi blushed fiercely at the introduction Kaen gave her; she still gushed every time he said 'I love you', so this was a serious change, albeit a very welcome one. Pointing them out one by one, Kaen introduced his friends next; "Of the three I was on stage with, the guy with the ponytail's Hawk, the blonde one's Eagle, and the big guy's Condor, but I assume you already know that from Kat, just like I assume you know the redhead's Falcon. Of the one's you don't know, the guy who makes Nappa look scrawny is Oz, the brunette's Harrier, and the runt who makes Vegeta look tall is Raptor. I assume you've met the ol' buzzard. Oh, and the little twerp on Falcon's lap's her baby sister Faile."

Of the entire group Kaen introduced, only Faile seemed to have any problem with what he'd said, standing up on her sister's legs and chirping, "I am _not_ a baby!" Kaen just grinned and messed up her hair, deepening the scowl on her tiny face.

Pi elbowed him lightly in the stomach, chiding, "Kaen, be nice." Smiling broadly, she said to everyone there, "It's nice to meet you all. I'd like to say he speaks of you a lot, but he hasn't mentioned you at all." She glared at him before turning back to them and adding, "I only really know what Kat told me, but anyone that can stand this big lug _has_ to be good."

Grinning, Kaen commented, "Well, you're certainly taking this well..."

"Oh there _will_ be words later Kaen," Pi replied sharply, without turning around, "I just don't want to harass you in front of your friends."

"I like her already," Faile piped up.

Stroking her sister's hair affectionately, Falcon said, "Me too lil' sis." Standing up - after carefully setting her sister down, of course - she commented to Pi, "Come, let's talk." At the groans of everyone else, she reprimanded good-naturedly, "You guys can grill her later; now is time for girl-talk," and, with a grin on her face, she dragged Pi and Harrier off, the little girl skipping after them.

--

Falcon and Harrier explained everything to her: about how Kaen had entered one of the races Hawk organised, blown everyone away with his performance, and left before receiving his winnings; about how, the next day, he'd shown up in the club - which was purely by chance she was told - and driven out a group of trouble makers; about how he'd heard their previous lead singer/guitarist (some guy they'd hired, and not really part of the group), dressed him down, and proven he could do better; about how he'd challenged them to have a shot of this drink he'd brought with him - oosquai, they found out later - and how he'd been surprised when even Harrier and Raptor, who believed themselves lightweights compared to the others, survived two shots without needing a trip to the hospital - Oz, she was told, downed eight, and still asked for more before Kaen cut him off for safety reasons.

Sitting there, talking with these girls, Pi felt herself filled with a rare sense of camaraderie; rarely, if ever, did she click with anyone as well as she did them. The only one she could remember feeling this accepted around since she'd been a kid was Videl, and even then, she still had concerns about the girl learning things she shouldn't. Here, however, she could truly be herself without worrying how people would react; as she'd seen herself during his performance, and as Kat had told her, Kaen had already told them all about himself, and had no problem with showing everyone just how different he was, and yet, no one seemed to notice. The girls broke down into giggles as they told her some of the excuses they'd heard about how Kaen had managed to drag that stool across earlier; the general consensus seemed to be that Eagle had kicked it over, despite not moving a muscle.

A grin slowly spread across her face as a thought occurred to her; maybe these guys would be willing to help her with something... After explaining it to them, matching grins reported that they were more than willing to help, and the perfect opportunity would be on Saturday. All they needed was a little time to explain it to the others.

"Leave that to me..." Pi grinned cryptically, before masking her amusement with a scowl and marching over to Kaen, demanding, "Kaen, we need to talk." Turning to Vulture, she asked with mock-forced politeness, "Is there a room here where we can talk in private. I wouldn't want to disturb the rest of the people here." He directed her to the stage room, which was, he explained, more or less soundproof, except around the door itself. Satisfied with that, Pi grabbed the front of Kaen's shirt and dragged him off; once they heard the door slam shut, the girls explained Pi's idea to the others, all of which seemed eager to help.

After half an hour, they began to get a little concerned about how well the 'talk' was going. "Hey Eagle," Hawk said around his drink, "Why don't you do check it out?"

"Me?" He spluttered, "Why me? He'll kill me if he catches me eavesdropping; why can't you guy's go?"

"Because," Falcon quipped back, a grin on her face, "You're the only one here who's expendable."

The others burst into laughter, and, with a sour look on his face, Eagle stalked off to the stage room door. He returned not one minute later, looking the world like he'd seen a ghost.

Curious, Hawk asked, "So, what's happening?"

Flopping heavily into his chair, and downing the rest of his drink, which he'd barely touched before, he replied, "Well, if they were arguing before, they've stopped. If I were to guess, I'd say they were... 'making up'."

Hawk was the first to understand the weight of that statement, the others working out what he meant shortly after. When the door opened shortly after, and the two strode out - Pi wearing a satisfied look, and Kaen a massive grin - Hawk couldn't help but remark to the gang, "I can't believe that, of all of us, Phoenix is the one who scored in the practice room first..."

--

It was well past midnight before Kaen and Pi decided to head home for the night; her mother was, again, right in saying that she didn't actually need a lot of sleep, but she was just used to sleeping eight hours from when she was younger. Sharing a last conspiratory word with the girls, they assured her that everyone was prepared to help out. All that remained was her part.

She grinned to herself as they flew home; she was getting better at hiding her thoughts. 'Come Saturday Kaen, you won't know what hit you.'

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Okay, another Kaen-and-Pi-centric chapter down. In fact, from memory this is the last chapter that focuses almost exclusively on those two. Chapter 20 should please you Gohan x Videl fans, so stick around and see for yourself.

In case I failed to mention it before, I don't own any and all songs that did appear in this chapter, may have appeared in previous chapters, or might appear in future chapters. The closest I get to owning them is owning the CD's they're on. For those of you who don't know, the two songs features in this chapter were 'Numb' by Linkin Park, and 'Cold' by Crossfade, in that order.

Now, a quick responce to first-time reviewer Trahmada (well, first time reviewing my story anyway). I'm not sure whether your review is considered a 'flame' or not, having never received one, as, while it doesn't give any constructive advice, it's not really crude and abusive either, so... I'll refer to it as a 'spark'. In any case, I will still respond to your two comments, with two quick remarks of my own (well, one quick, and one not-so quick).

First, where did you get the idea that Kaen is stronger than Gohan? He's not, and never will be, so if I've given the message he is, I've made a mistake somewhere. Like you, I get highly annoyed when people add characters stronger than the strongest canon characters, and I truly believe there is no-one stronger than Gohan, bar Goku, who has the ability to be exactly as strong as he needs to be, provided the bad guys kick the crap through him first. Kaen is to Gohan as Vegeta is to Goku; the rival always one step behind, but still strong enough to give him a run for his money. The closest thing I believe I've mentioned that could be thought of as saying Kaen is the stronger was when I had Gohan comment that, when the two fight at the **same power level**, Kaen would win, because he has more moves, but then, the same can be said for Piccolo; if anyone fights Piccolo at Piccolo's level, they are going to get the shit kicked out of them, repeatedly, because Piccolo has more tricks and more fighting experience than anyone else, ever. In case it wasn't clear, I'll mention it again: Kaen is **not**, and **never will be** for any real length of time, stronger than Gohan. **Ever**.

Now, as for the comment about focusing more on Gohan and Videl, this issue has already been dealth with, and I have already said everything I plan to about it. If anyone mentions it again, they will be ignored, and if you don't like it, that's not my problem.


	21. The Lone Gunman Returns

--- When Worlds Collide: Omake ---

Interlude the Second - The Lone Gunman Returns

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Note: There may not be an Interlude the Third

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"Alright chief, what's the situation?"

The (fairly rotund) chief of police spun around to face the voice, relief blooming on his portly face at the sight of her. "Ah Videl, thank Kami you're here. There's a lunatic inside City Hall with a bomb. He's holding the mayor and a group of dignitaries hostage, and he's demanding your father come and 'face the truth like a man', whatever he means by that."

"Don't worry chief, I'll take care of it," Videl replied confidentially.

"NO!" The chief shouted abruptly, stopping her in her tracks, "If you go in there, you'll be killed. From the glimpses we've gotten of the bomb, it's highly unstable, and the bomber is clearly insane; you'll never be able to talk him out."

"Maybe, maybe not," Videl shrugged, "But if I don't try, then all those people inside will die." Accepting no arguments from the chief, she steeled herself, then walked calmly into the building.

Keeping her hands slightly raised, and visible at all times, she called out, "This is Videl Satan. I am unarmed, and I am coming in so we can discuss this."

"I know who you are, Miss Satan." A male voice called back, "I do believe I asked for your father, but you'll do for now..." As she walked into the room, Videl could see the mayor and the other councillors huddled at the back of the room. "That's far enough Miss Satan," the bomber called abruptly; she stopped quickly, not wishing to antagonize the man.

Keeping her hands visible, and holding herself in as non-threatening a manor as she could, she asked, "What is it you want?"

The bomber laughed, replying, "I thought I made it clear what I want; I want your father."

"My father is too busy for this sort of thing," she replied quickly; it was a practiced line, something her father fed her, that always left a foul taste in her mouth whenever she was forced to use it.

"Ah, maybe so," the man replied, a massive grin on his face, "But now that _you_ are here, he will _make_ time."

Refusing to react to the fact she had become bait, she asked, "What do you want my father for?"

"I know the truth," the man replied, still grinning, although the grin had turned cold, "I know the truth of the Cell Games, and your father is going to announce the truth to the world, or I will turn this building, and everyone in it, into a slag pit."

o-o-o

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

The chief spun around once more towards the sound of a welcome voice, coming face to face with Saiyaman... more or less. Sighing in relief, he replied, "Ah Saiyaman, we can indeed use your help. There's a bomber inside, and Videl went in to try and talk him out, but she's had no luck so far, and we're running out of time. We've got a sniper set up to take him out, but he can't get a clean shot; you've got to try and get him closer to the window."

"I'll see what I can do," Saiyaman replied with a nod. Focusing for a moment, he could only accurately pinpoint Videl's ki, so, placing two fingers to his forehead, he used Instant Transmission to appear in front of her.

"Not another step Saiyaman!" the bomber declared, abruptly clicking the device held in his hand, "I knew you'd show up sooner or later, so I built this bomb just for you. If I release this button, the bomb goes off, and, as I was just informing Miss Satan there, the bomb I wear is merely _one_ of the bombs this will trigger; there are enough explosives in this building to level three entire city blocks. I know _you_ will survive, but will the others?"

"Why are you doing this?" Saiyaman asked calmly.

"I know who you are Saiyaman," the bomber replied, grinning again, "I know what you did seven years ago." The man slowly took a few steps forward, adding, "I know what you've done for the planet, and it's about time the rest of the sheep found out as well."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Saiyaman asked, honestly confused.

Before the bomber could answer, a single shot rang out, and the man let out a cry as a streak of light, which sheared a hole clear through the window, continued on to shear his thumb off; so great was the heat of the shot, the top of the detonator melted slightly, sealing the button inside, and preventing the bomb from detonating. Not wasting the opportunity, Saiyaman sped forward, using a few well-placed ki blasts to quickly remove the bomb vest.

From there, it was a simple matter to apprehend the man; his plans foiled, he was only too happy to inform the police where the other bombs were. After all, he never _actually_ wanted to hurt anyone; he just wanted the truth revealed.

o-o-o

"I thought I recognised that shot. There was only one man I knew of that could've made it."

The sniper turned at the voice, seeing Saiyaman standing behind him, a smirk on the visibly part of his face. Standing up, the man shrugged, replying, "What can I say? I'm good at my job."

"Still modest too, huh Avery?"

The man snorted, his rifle retracting into the silver armband he wore, "Modesty is for those who can't back up their claims; I have no such problem." His features were unusually human, considering the man was actually a birdman; no doubt some kind of camouflage device.

Gohan/Saiyaman opened his mouth to reply, but before he could a female voice replied, "So this is where you disappeared to, huh Saiyaman?" The voice, of course, belonged to none other than Videl

"Saiyaman?" Avery asked, an eyebrow cocked in question, "That's what you're calling yourself these days?"

Gohan just shrugged, replying, "It's a long story."

"Wait a minute," Videl interjected, turning to Avery, "You know Saiyaman?"

"Nope," Avery replied, a grin on his face, "I can honestly say I have never met 'Saiyaman' until today."

Growling, Videl barked, "Don't give me that; I heard you before. You know who he is."

"Ah, but you didn't ask that," Avery shot back, "You asked if I knew Saiyaman, and I replied honestly. I _do_, however, know the person who grew up _into_ Saiyaman."

"How come you're working for the Satan City PD now?" 'Saiyaman' interrupted, lest the questioning lead somewhere he wasn't comfortable with.

Avery just shrugged, "The pay's good. I don't technically work for them though; I work _with_ them. I'm a freelancer. I just happen to be in Satan City for the next month or two - I'm sure you know I move about a bit - so I contacted the local law enforcement and offered my services. For a price, of course."

Saiyaman nodded, "Of course.

"Wait just a minute here!" Videl interrupted again, "You know who Saiyaman is behind the mask?"

"Uh huh," Avery nodded, "I've known him since he was a boy of nine."

Videl appeared to almost be drooling in anticipation as she asked, "So, who is he?"

Grinning a bit, and silently reassuring Gohan he wasn't going to blow his secret, Avery calmly replied, "What's it worth to you?"

Stunned, the girl replied, "What?"

"I'm a mercenary, girl," Avery replied, "I don't do anything for nothing. You want to know who Saiyaman is? Well, what's that worth?"

Racking her brain to come up with a number that wouldn't be outright rejected, Videl didn't notice Saiyaman starting to leave. "Uh... Fifty thousand?"

Avery snorted, "Please, the bullet I just used is worth more than that."

"A hundred?"

"A month's upkeep on my rifle costs that much."

"Five hundred?"

Avery smirked, "Do you _have_ five hundred thousand on your person?"

Videl had the good graces to blush, replying, "Uh, no..."

Still smirking, Avery just replied, "Well, when you do, come find me, and we'll talk again." Without giving her a chance to argue, he walked around the corner of the balcony they stood on. When the girl gave chase, she could see no sign of the man; just the tail end of a bird flying away. Grumbling to herself, Videl headed back to school, unaware classes had been released already, while bemoaning the loss of another lead towards the identity of Saiyaman.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Like the interlude before it, this chapter wasn't part of the original series when I wrote it, and as such, you'll notice a very basic wrap-up of this in the start of the next chapter. I _had_ planned on including this during the planning stages, but as I got to actually writing, it just... never happened.

Part of me feels this isn't really big enough to warrant a chapter all of it's own, but... it's an omake, I can do whatever the hell I damn well want. :P Besides, the chapter wound up like Avery himself; short, sharp, and to the point.

I _was _planning on updating yesterday, but was dicking me about, so...

Now, PsychoT's comment about my mistake... Hehehe. I must admit, I deliberately commented on chapter 20 to see if anyone was paying attention. The chapter refers to as chapter 20 is actually chapter 19. Chapter 20 is actualy the one after this one, which calls chapter 22. The reason for this is simple; chapters 14 and 21 (this one) aren't part of the main story line, and thus are not numbered chapters. So, when I mentioned chapter 20 in the last chapter, I actually meant the chapter after this one. Confusing, no?


	22. A Night On The Town

--- When Worlds Collide ---

**Chapter 20** - A Night On The Town

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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"Phoenix, how's the vault coming along?"

He paused, pressing a button on the side of his headset as he replied, making sure to keep his voice low, "It's proven almost completely resistant to every non-invasive method. Time to try something a little more... drastic."

The obviously female voice on the other end of the communicator sighed, muttering, "If you say so. Just remember to keep it down; the only alarm I could disable was on the vault door itself."

"I got it Roc, don't worry. You just watch our backs, and make sure the exit's ready." With this, he ended the conversation, floating up slightly until his shoulders were level with the top of the vault door. The owner of this mansion was particularly paranoid about security; just the vault area itself had 3 alarm systems: one to ensure the locks remained locked, one to listen for any loud noises, and one inside the vault itself, should anything manage to slip in. Furthermore, there was an overseer alarm that went off if more than one system went down for any reason; the vault door alarm had currently been set to 'diagnostic', thus disabling it.

Extending his arm, he pointed a single finger at the gap between the door and the surrounding wall, and, concentrating slightly, a thin beam of highly concentrated ki extended from said finger. Sliding the ki blade into the gap, he slowly started rolling in the air, following the curvature of the door. A satisfied smirk reached his face as he felt the first lock give way; the door and locks may have been made of ki resistant metal, but there wasn't a substance anywhere in the known universe that could withstand the super-concentrated heat energy of _his_ ki; even the best laser anywhere couldn't cut as quickly and cleanly as he could.

Once he'd turned full circle, and severed every lock and hinge, he grabbed hold of the door handle and, with a slight pull, wrenched it free from the doorway, setting it down carefully beside the door; he still had to make sure he didn't set off the audio alarm. Turning to the young girl keeping watch beside him, he whispered, "Your turn Raven."

She nodded, her eyes taking on a slight reddish tinge as she used her powers to find the alarm lasers inside the vault. Satisfied, she took a running leap and began doing flips, cartwheels, and other feats of acrobatics until she came to rest, balancing on her hands, on the safe; were it not for the vault being a ki blocked area, she could have flown, or even gone incorporeal.

Clapping his hands quietly, Phoenix mouthed, "Show-off."

Raven just stuck her tongue out at him, mouthing back, "Eh, you love me for it bro."

It was a sign of just how paranoid the guy was that the item they came for was inside a safe, which was inside a vault, but neither would stop them. Balancing on a single arm, Raven crouched down until she could reach the safe's combination lock, using her sensitive hearing to tell when the pins fell into place. With a massive grin, she opened the door, balancing precariously on it as she leaned in to grab what they came for. It was a fairly nondescript silver box, contents unknown, and they knew better than to ask details.

Securing the package into the pocket on her right leg, Raven grabbed a few more items from the safe and placed them in her left pocket, to balance herself out; plus, it'd help throw investigators off the trail of why they came, as well as providing a bonus to their payment. Satisfied, she carefully closed the safe again, making sure not to trigger the audio alarm, and exited the room the way she came in, slipping between the lasers.

Once she'd made her way out, Phoenix hefted the giant door up again, carefully sliding it into place; no one would know there was anything wrong until either they came to check, or the vault door alarm finished it's 'diagnostic run', whichever came first. Tapping his headset again, he said, "Roc, what's the status on our exit?"

As if to answer his question, the ground next to the pair opened up like one of those spiral doors he'd seen, Roc's face popping out a moment later, a cheeky grin on her face as she replied, "See for yourself." Not wasting time on words, the other two quickly dove into the hole, which closed up behind the three of them as they made their way out. In the end, it wasn't until twelve hours later, when the alarm came back on, that the occupants discovered the break in.

--

That night, the three partied hard; they had a lot to celebrate. Another job well done, the package already delivered, payment already received, and the bounty on their heads had already gone up; according to the news report they heard, each one of them were now worth 15 million credits dead, and another 5 million alive, making them, individually, the most wanted criminals in the past thousand years, never mind combined.

Ordinarily, the three of them would have probably felt bad about their profession, but they had to survive somehow, and this seemed the easiest way. Thanks to Frieza, they were some of the last few of two almost extinct races; Raven was a Neko-Jin, a race which, according to Intel, had been reduced to less than 50, and Phoenix and Roc were two of the last half dozen-odd Saiyans anywhere in, at the very least, the North Quadrant, so it was probably fortunate they were a couple.

Even in thought, they were starting to think of themselves using the aliases they'd created; after four-odd years, it was just... habit. Almost never did Phoenix use the name Kapskaen anymore, nor did Roc use Pi, or Raven Katrina; that was the past, and they had to live in the now. They'd been a team for what seemed like forever, Phoenix and Roc having grown up together, and the pair rescuing Raven from authorities barely a month after both their planets had been wiped out; now, they were family.

The sound of twigs snapping drew the attention of all three, and they quickly dove out of the way, which was fortunate, because where they'd been soon disappeared in a massive red-tinged explosion. Crouching warily, Phoenix growled, "Show yourself bounty hunter!" This wasn't the first hunter they'd had coming for them...

A deep chuckled answered him, as their attacker replied, "Well, I _am_ a hunter, but the bounty is of no interest to me; I didn't even know there was one." When the dust and smoke cleared, the three of them gasped in shock at their attacker, but before they could react, he fired another blast, this time aiming directly at Phoenix, but before it hit, Roc dove in front of her partner, trying to shield him from it; unfortunately, it was too powerful, and both were incinerated at once instead.

Tears in her eyes, Raven cried, "You bastard! You killed them!" He turned his back on her, having done what he came here for, but she wasn't about to allow him to leave, shouting, "You killed my family! DIE!" and firing wave after wave of ki blasts, her target disappearing from sight under the onslaught, as explosion after explosion rocked the area.

When she finally ceased her barrage, drained of energy, their assailant still stood; if anything, the only damage he'd sustained was some minor burns to his already ruined combat suit. Charging another blast, he growled, "If you're that eager to see them again, I am happy to help!" Firing the attack, he grinned as Raven was instantly destroyed in the explosion.

Pressing a few buttons on the Device on his arm, Nijuushin disappeared in the hail of blue lightning that would have become his trademark if anyone lived to remember; just five left now. Just five more, and he would be reunited with the woman he loved more then life itself.

o-o-o

"Hey Gohan, thanks for the day off."

The demi-Saiyan had the good graces to blush slightly, rubbing the back of his neck in classic Son fashion as he laughed nervously and replied, "Well, it's not like I _meant_ to, but you're welcome anyway..." It was Thursday, and Videl had been called out in first period to help the police. Unfortunately, Gohan wasn't able to find a decent enough excuse to follow, and, in his agitation, he'd started tapping his foot. This had lead to an earthquake, accidental of course, and in the confusion, Gohan fled after her. Kaen, Pi, and Kat, in turn, left; in the end, school was released for the day, everyone going home except Erasa, who'd waited to inform Videl. It was now around seven that night. Looking around a little, Gohan asked, "So, is Kaen free? Just wanted to talk to him about something..."

The young redhead shook her head, muttering, "Do not disturb..." under her breath. At Gohan's curious glance she continued, "Pi was shopping with her mum all day..." 'Well, that's what she told everyone anyway...' she thought to herself, 'she may have Kaen fooled, but I know that Raene didn't go into the city to go shopping with her daughter.' Continuing her statement out loud, Kat added, "Well, I spent the day hanging out with Leo, which left bro at home, alone, spending the day training. When Pi got home again, the two disappeared into their room, and haven't left since." The two shuddered slightly at the weight of that statement, before Kat asked, "So, what were you gonna tell him? Maybe I can help?"

He shook his head, "I doubt it; it's a guy thing." Nonetheless, he did sit down across from her.

Remembering her manners suddenly, Kat asked, "Oh, you want a drink?" When he nodded, she quickly grabbed a couple of cans of soft drink out of the fridge, chucking one to the dark haired boy, before cracking hers open as she returned to her seat; to her annoyance, Pi still wouldn't let her have any alcohol, despite her being of an age to drink here on earth.

Taking a sip from his drink, Gohan took a few moments to collect his thoughts before saying, "Alright, it's like this. As I'm sure you're aware, I've got feelings for Videl." He waited for the girl to nod before continuing; "Anyway, she invited me to the movies tonight; more accurately, Erasa decided it would be good if Sharpner, her, Videl, and I, all went to the cinema tonight, and forced Videl into asking. I assume Erasa set this up as a double date type of thing, but according to Videl, it's a 'just friends' thing. What I'm wondering is, do I act like it's a date or not?"

Thinking for a moment, Kat replied, "You want my advice? Just be your usual gentleman self, and play things by ear. Most importantly, _don't_ start anything; I can tell how Videl works, and unless she herself reaches for your hand, or moves to kiss you, or something, you're likely to scare her off if you try and start something. I know she feels something for you, but at the same time, she's afraid of that feeling, so, I dunno... Don't freak her out, I guess..."

Gohan just smiled at her warmly, "Thanks. That's some pretty good advice. I take it the 'reading her reactions' thing is a girl thing?" Kat just nodded, a grin on her face. Changing the subject slightly, Gohan asked slyly, "So, how was your date with Leo today?"

The redhead catgirl spat out the mouthful of cola she'd just taken, spluttering slightly as she choked on the brown liquid. Managing to clear her airway, she exclaimed, "Date? It wasn't a date! We're just friends!"

Gohan just raised an eyebrow, obviously not believing her, as he replied sarcastically, "Uh huh, sure, and right now, Kaen and Pi are having a pillow fight."

As if to punctuate his statement, the door to their room opened up, Pi walked into the kitchen wearing Kaen's red overshirt; fortunately, due to her lack of height, the shirt was long enough to well clear her hips, hiding the fact it was all she wore. Grabbing a few bottles of oosquai from the fridge - being careful not to bend down as she did so - she walked back to the bedroom without a word, closing the door behind her.

Pointing absently to the now closed door, Gohan said, "Case and point. Now, I don't suppose you've got anything to remove that image from my head, or at least to burn away the accompanying after thoughts?"

Kat shook her head, finishing her drink before replying, "I just thank Dende, and dad, every night that dad had the foresight to soundproof the rooms when he built the place; they are _very_ loud, as I found out one night during our travels. Let's just say I didn't get to sleep until roughly four in the morning..."

Gohan stood up roughly, exclaiming, "That's it. I'm outta here. I think I'd rather deal with an unpredictable Videl then stay here any longer; less psychological scars this way." As he started for the door, he was surprised to hear Kat grabbing her stuff and following. He turned to her for an explanation after they'd exited the house, and she'd locked the door behind them.

Kat just winked at him, taking to the air and saying, "Let's just say I have a date, of sorts..." She sped off into the night air before he could question her further; oh sure, if he wanted to he could have easily kept pace with her and grilled her for answers, but he had more important things to worry about. Taking to the air himself, he sped off in the direction of the Satan City Megaplex Cinemas. He just hoped this visit would be better than the _last_ time he'd been dragged to the movies...

o-o-o

"'Del, relax. He'll be here."

Videl stopped abruptly, quickly realising she'd been pacing again; she couldn't help it, she was so nervous... Why couldn't she have just asked him out... When she'd asked Gohan to the movies, at the behest of Erasa, she'd panicked a bit and blurted out that it was 'just as friends'. She realised after that, while part of her was screaming at her to just ask Gohan out and be done with it, another part of her was holding her back; that same part was the side of her that was suspicious of him, and was determined to ferret out his secrets. Obviously, she rationalised, she wouldn't be comfortable asking him out until she was no longer a mushroom in the world of Son Gohan; that is, always kept in the dark and fed sh...

"Hey guys," Gohan's voice cried, interrupting her thoughts, "Sorry I took so long to get here; it's a bit of a drive. Am I late?"

The pigtailed girl turned to reply, but her voice left her as she took in Gohan's appearance; he wasn't wearing anything overly special, just a pair of dark blue jeans, a deep blue muscle shirt, and a leather jacket, but to her, he was a god. Erasa, jumping to her friends rescue after filing it away for future teasing, replied, "Not at all. We just got here a bit too early." In truth, the dark haired boy _was_ a little late, but she didn't want him to feel bad.

Nodding, Gohan asked, "So, what're we seeing?" A sour-cross-horrified look crossed his face as he said, "It's not that horrible Titanic movie is it? I've already had someone try to subject me to that..."

"Kami no," Videl snorted, finding her voice, "I'd rather die than see that, no matter _how_ much Erasa might complain. It's some samurai film; I forget the name. It's probably romance - Erasa _did_ choose it - but from what I've heard there's some decent action for the rest of us."

That settled, the four friends headed over to buy the tickets; well, Erasa dragged Videl off so the two of them could 'freshen up', and Sharpner went over to the ticket booth, so Gohan decided he'd just buy Videl's ticket for her, and if she got upset, well, he'd deal with it. Sharpner raised an eyebrow when Gohan bought two tickets, like he himself had, and opened his mouth to comment; it wasn't the comment Gohan expected though. "Treat her well man."

Gohan nearly passed out in shock; the first thing the blonde said to him all night, and he seemed to _approve_ of Videl and him getting together. Confused, Gohan started to reply, but the blonde jock cut him off, saying, "You heard me; treat Videl right. I realised that I stand no chance of getting her, and I never did; going after her just kept me from seeing what I had in front of me. Me and Erasa are going out now; I asked her out just today. All I'm sayin' is, Videl obviously sees something in you I don't, something she never saw in anyone else, so treat her right, otherwise I might have to break your face."

Gohan, like usual, ignored the threat, knowing that Sharpner would never be able to hurt him. He was, however, moved by the jock's speech, so he replied confidently, "Don't worry, if Videl and I get together, I'll treat her like a queen."

Sharpner just grinned, sombre mood passed, "When man, not if. Now come on, the girls are comin'."

o-o-o

She smiled to herself, carefully removing the piece of glass from the skylight, then, making sure her rope was secure, taking a nosedive through the hole. The partially elastic cord stretched until her feet could almost touch the ground, before springing back up again, and down again, until it reached its balance point. Unhooking the cable, the used her natural balance to spin, mid air, and land gracefully on her feet. She looked around, and grinned to herself again; perfect. This would do nicely...

The museum was the... twentieth?... place she'd broken into tonight, but she wasn't going to steal anything from here; well, she didn't really consider it stealing, as she'd left a note explaining what she'd taken, and where to find it. It was just borrowing. In any case, the museum was the final stop on her jaunt. All twenty places she'd broken into, she'd used no ki techniques, no Avarrdo-style tools, only the basic thief tools her birth mother had used, and her own natural grace.

One of the reason's she'd done this was a challenge, to prove to herself that she could do it; another, to test her skills, and make sure she wasn't getting rusty, or overly dependant on ki or special tools. Between places, however, she had no problems with using ki; there was no way she would have been able to rob nineteen places in one night without flying between them. Pulling a capsule out - she only put the items she'd borrowed into capsules _after_ exiting the building, for ease of travel only - she clicked it open, and began setting up.

About ten minutes later, when she was satisfied with her work, she withdrew the portable camera she carried with her from her belt pouch, and took a few keepsake snapshots or her work; she already had a few from the previous places she'd visited this night. Pocketing the camera again, she took the pre-prepared note out of her leg pocket, set it on the middle of the table, and walked out of the safe zone into one of the areas under watch of an alarm. When the alarm started blaring, she took a running leap and grabbed hold of the rope, clambering up and out - taking the rope with her - before the skylight could seal shut. Grinning, she took to the air; destination home. Gohan was gonna freak...

o-o-o

She grumbled to herself as she flew to the scene of the crime in her yellow copter; she just couldn't win. On one hand, it seemed that there was this great conspiracy to get her and Gohan together, as Erasa attested to, but on the other, it seemed as though there was _another_ great conspiracy to keep them apart, as this call-out showed. Granted, the whole 'double date' thing Erasa set up was kind of a bust - Videl was too nervous and internally conflicted to do much - but Gohan seemed to understand; hell, he'd even bought her ticket for her, as well as being considerate enough to get refreshments. Idly, she wondered just how he knew what she liked...

Ah well, no matter. She'd only half paid attention to the movie, instead silently hoping she could work up the nerve to so much as hold Gohan's hand, and failing, when she'd gotten the call. Again, she idly wondered why she'd decided to be on call, but it was too late to change that now. Instead, she'd had to leave her friends behind and fly to the museum, because some idiot had broken in and set off the alarm.

She set down on the roof, quickly searching for a way in. After a few minutes, she heard an instantly recognizable, and remarkably annoying, deep voice call out, "Videl, I believe they came in here."

Spinning on her heel, she came face-to-helmet with none other that Saiyaman himself; she berated herself internally for not noticing him arrive. Walking over, she found that, as he'd said, this did appear to be where the burglar broke in; the skylight. Bending down, Saiyaman carefully pried the two halves of the security door open, whistling as he saw how high of a drop it was. Floating slightly down the hole, he grinned at her, saying, "Do you want a lift, or will you catch the next one?"

She sighed, blowing out an irritated breath, before conceding, "Fine. The sooner I get out of here, the sooner I can get back to... something more important." She stopped herself from saying 'get back to Gohan'; vaguely, she realised that no matter how long she took here, she wouldn't get back to the cinema in time. Due to the slimness of the hole, 'Saiyaman' had to hold Videl against him, with her standing on his feet, as he floated them down into the building, releasing her the moment his feet touched the ground.

'Saiyaman' whistled softly as he cast his eye around the room. As far as he could see were paintings, statues, decorative china, wall hangings, all kinds of things, but _not_ the sort of thing one would find in a national history museum like this one; well, not all clumped together, set up like this anyway. In short, someone had stolen these items from somewhere else, and brought them here. His eyes came to rest on the centre of the display, and he couldn't help but sigh; an ornate table, with two equally ornate chairs, two unlit candles, and two plates of food, with cutlery. In other words, a dinner for two.

Scowling to herself as she noticed the note on the table, Videl picked it up, having a quick read before mumbling, "Stupid thieves. Can't even spell properly..."

Curious, Gohan, a.k.a. Saiyaman, plucked the note from Videl's hands, having a read himself. To the untrained eye, it read simply, "From your friendly neighbourhood Kat-burglar," but to Gohan's trained eye, he could spot the writing making up the border. Even if Videl noticed it, however, she wouldn't have been able to read it; it was in Saiya-Go. It read: "E ruba oui ahzuo ouin tyda Lammudu. Tuh'd cyo E hajan tu yhodrehk vun oui. B.C. Ruf'c drec vun nasujehk ihfyhdat esykac?" Translation: "I hope you enjoy your date Celloto. Don't say I never do anything for you. P.S. How's this for removing unwanted images?" All in all, it worked out to one person; Celloto was _his_ Saiyan name, so obviously this was a set-up.

"Cute," he drawled. 'So, this is the 'date' Kat had tonight huh? I don't know whether to thank her, or hurt her...' Looking to Videl, he decided to throw caution to the wind, saying, "Well, I don't know about you, but I could use the meal." When Videl looked at him, caught between curiosity and outrage, he added, "Well, someone's obviously gone to a lot of trouble to set this up, and it seems a shame to waste it. Besides, my mother always taught me not to waste food."

Videl was just about to launch into one of her trademark tirades when a thought hit her. In all the time she'd known Saiyaman, she'd never had more than a fleeting contact with him at best. This was the perfect time to try and get some information from the source, and possibly get a lead into who he was; she wasn't naive enough to believe he'd _tell_ her his real name. Nodding, she moved to take a seat, and in a surprising show of chivalry, Saiyaman actually held the seat for her as she sat down, annoyingly reminding her of Gohan. If only she didn't know they were two separate people...

Taking his seat across from her, Gohan reached across slightly, flicking his thumb as though he held a lighter, and creating a small ki ball on the end of it, using it to light the candles. Curiosity taking hold, Videl asked, "Okay, how do you do that?"

Taking a page from the book of Kaen, Gohan just smirked and said, "Practice."

Shaking her head slightly, Videl began by asking the most obvious, and to her, most important question first, "So why are you here in my city? Stopping thieves and thugs was my job; why did you have to muscle in?"

Saiyaman just shrugged, replying, "I was in the area, and it seemed like the right thing to do. The more time I spend in this city, the more I realise just how much help it needs. Besides, it's a good excuse to bust some heads right?"

Pressing on, she then asked, "So why the stupid mask and that getup? What have you got to hide? And are you that 'Gold Fighter' that showed up one morning?"

He just leaned back in his seat, crossing his hands behind his head before commented, "I'll give you that; I _am_ the 'Gold Fighter', but that was just another disguise. Look, I like to help people, and to hurt bad guys; beyond that, this is a hobby to me, and I don't particularly feel like having people, press especially, harass me for it, hence the disguises."

Videl felt her blood boil, and her face begin to flush with anger at his off-handed comments about her life's work; the thing she spent most of her teenage life doing was just a _hobby_ to this arrogant, self centred, muscle-headed jerk! She was just about to give him the rough side of her tongue - and the words she'd chosen were _not_ the sort one would use in polite conversation - when she saw the smirk on the uncovered portion of his face. Growling softly, she barked, "What are you smirking at buddy?"

Gohan's smirk widened, if possible. Everything he'd said thus far, while true, was phrased purely to piss her off, because, as any red-blooded Saiyan male will tell you, there's nothing more hot than an angry girl who can kick some ass. Gohan was listening to his Saiyan blood, and it felt _good_. "You know," he remarked almost casually, "you're cute when you're angry."

Videl's anger shattered into embarrassment, and, to her horror, she was struck by a rising urge to giggle like a schoolgirl; she beat that urge down, and kicked dirt on it for good measure. Accepting her stunned silence as the end of question time, Gohan began to calmly eat his meal, more a snack to his Saiyan system, but enough to tide him over until he could raid the fridge at home; using the Split Form technique like this still made him hungry...

Not too long after, Videl joined him in eating, and she had to admit to herself that it was a comfortable silence they'd fallen into, and she was actually enjoying herself. All too soon, however, the meal came to an end, and Saiyaman stood to leave, but before he could, Videl interjected, "Oh, one last thing before you go."

Saiyaman turned back to her, muttering, "Hm?" The corner of his mouth was twitching upwards, as though he were fighting the urge to smile, or smirk; both were equally likely.

Standing up slowly, Videl declared, "If you _ever_ pinch me like that again, I'll break your arm."

He just smirked, taking to the air as he replied, "Don't act like you didn't enjoy it." As he began to fly off, Videl realised that she'd left her copter on the roof, and thus was trapped here, but Saiyaman seemed to be one step ahead of her, as usual, turning around mid air and lightly throwing a capsule towards her, saying, "Oh, by the way, you appear to have left this on the roof." Catching the capsule, she saw it was, indeed, her helicopter, but by the time she looked up again, Saiyaman had gone; obviously, he'd meant it to be a distraction, and it worked.

Anger returning on Saiyaman's absence, she let out a yell and kicked one of the chairs, sending it flying; fortunately, while old and ornate, the chairs were extremely strong, so it didn't break upon impact with the ground. That... That, _pig_, was infuriating, brash, and over-bearing; nothing but a hoodlum wearing the guise of justice, doing whatever he wanted, however he saw fit. He was self-serving, dangerous, reckless, confident, charming, and oh sweet Kami so manly... Her thoughts trailed off as she fell to her knees, and, were she the type to do so, she would have started crying as the pieces fell into place in her mind; she had a crush on Saiyaman, possibly as big as the one she had for Gohan. This was _not_ happening...

Her communicator flared to life, and she could hear the chief's worried voice asking, "Videl, is everything okay? We hadn't heard for you for a while; should I dispatch a few cars?"

She sighed, pressing the button to reply, "No chief; everything is under control. The perp was long gone when I got here. The situation is under control, but you may want to dispatch a clean up unit in the morning; I have a feeling you'll get quite a few more reports of break-ins..."

Not waiting for a reply, she turned the device off, walking over to the security system to let herself out; fortunately, with her position she was granted skeleton key access to pretty much everywhere in the city. As she slowly walked home, after deciding the night air would do her good (she wasn't exactly in a hurry to get home anyway) Videl tried to sort through the train wreck of her thoughts. In the end, the only conclusion she reached, was that life as she knew it had just got a whole lot more complicated. She had no idea just how right she was...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

This chapter was almost entirely my beta reader Ninja's idea. It's rife with clichés, but then, what anime, ever, wasn't?

I probably could have ended the chapter without those last three paragraphs without issue, but eh, I didn't; live with it.

Now, for those who jump straight to the latest chapter, and thus skipped 21 (I'm sure there's some of you), which is also new, I'll reiterate the comment in there. PsychoT made mention of a mistake I made in the notes of chapter 20, wherein I talked about chapter 20. This was a deliberate act on my part to see if anyone had noticed the fact my chapters were 'lagging' a bit. You'll see from the bold text at the very top of the page that _this_ is chapter 20. This is due to the fact that chapters 14 and 21 are not actually proper chapters. There are only 30 story chapters in the series, but the series clocks in at 33 chapters, because of 3 omakes, or 'additional material', for those not familiar with the term; think of them as like the deleted scenes you occasionally find with DVD movies.

Note that, for that reason, it's not vitally important you read chapter 21. It just contains a (very) short expansion on the police call-out mentioned in this chapter, as well as a cameo of one of the characters from my last series. You won't really lose anything by not reading it.


	23. Darkness Rising

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 21 - Darkness Rising

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He scowled to himself as he flew away from the palace, his mate by his side. He always felt so... unclean... after meeting with that tiny, wrinkly, flea-man thing they all called 'Master'. It didn't matter to him how many Saiyans accepted the way things were, to him, they were no better off now than they were when Frieza was still alive. Hell, they were probably worse off. Under Frieza's reign, the Saiyan race was just told what to do to avoid being killed en masse; now, they were essentially slaves, who could be killed with a thought and a wave of a hand.

Their Master, a wizard named Babidi, had shown up on the planet about a year or so ago, making up some story to be allowed sanctuary on the planet, but before long, he'd started turning his magic on the Saiyan race as a whole. Pride begets evil, and that darkness in their hearts was all Babidi needed to take control of them. Of course, there were a minority of Saiyans who were too pure to be controlled - the young, especially, were too innocent to have enough of a stain on their souls - but there weren't any of them left now. Babidi had ordered their destruction, and the controlled Saiyans obeyed, killing every pure Saiyan in the universe; well, every pure Saiyan bar one.

While he himself had enough darkness in his heart to allow Babidi to control him, his mate had not. Rather than be separated from him, however, she'd willingly gone to Babidi and asked to become a Majin, so she could still be with him, and with her desire, and acceptance, the magic had taken hold, but there was a slight catch no one could have seen coming. He could _enchant_ her perfectly well with her permission, but because of the goodness in her heart, he couldn't _control_ her, nor could he use his magic _against_ her. This protection, in part, transferred to him through their bond.

Of course, most Saiyans couldn't be completely controlled; the pride that contaminated them was, after all, a warrior's pride, but it was more than enough for him to use his magic to _make_ them obey. Pi, however, could not be controlled at all, so Babidi had been forced to threaten him to ensure she obeyed, but even that was starting to lose it's effect; the longer Pi stayed under the effects of the Majin magic, the less Babidi's magic worked on Kaen.

This was, in part, Pi's plan when she subjected herself to it; she and Kaen knew enough about how their bond worked to know that, given time, she'd be able to free him from the magic. They were a little worried about what would happen when she succeeded though; Babidi had already used his magic to destroy Frieza, and no doubt if they proved to be a threat to him he'd have the other Saiyans do away with them.

Win or lose, Kaen decided, it would be worth it. Babidi had ordered his younger siblings killed when it was found he couldn't control them, and he had a blood debt to pay for that... The stylised 'M' practically branded to his forehead burned for a moment, reminding him that, for the moment, he could still no sooner raise a finger against Babidi than he could Pi; that was one thing that annoyed Babidi to no end, that even if he took complete control over Kaen's body and used it like a puppet, he _still_ couldn't kill Pi with it due to their bond. Putting the thoughts out of his head, the pair returned to their duty; for the time being, at least, they were forced to obey.

He quickly snapped his head up, gazing off into the distance. Pi opened her mouth to question him, but he beat her to it, muttering, "I don't know. There's just... something wrong. I can feel... me; I don't know how else to describe it." Growling lowly, he added, "I don't know what's going on, but I intend to find out." They shared a quick nod, before blasting off in the direction of this disturbance, side by side.

--

He growled to himself as he slapped his attackers away, sending a few blasts after them for good measure. He hadn't expected this heavy a resistance, being attacked by wave after wave of what had to be Saiyans, but they looked odd with the pale skin, bulging veins, and that 'M' on their forehead. Worse, no matter how badly he beat them, they just kept coming back! It was worse than when he'd fought those half-breeds; at least there, the wounds he inflicted stayed. Here, he _knew_ he'd shattered some limbs, but they healed in seconds!

Smirking a little, he employed his most recently acquired technique, creating a blade of super-heated raw ki extending from his hand, and used it to slice off a few limbs. He grinned to himself, 'let's see them grow _those_ back!' Deciding they'd been incapacitated enough, Nijuushin sped off, intent on finding this dimensions version of him. As it turned out, he needn't have bothered, as, within moments, he saw _them_ racing towards _him_; this made his life easier.

If the male was surprised to see him, he didn't show it; the girl looked a little shocked, but not as much as she should have, strange... Powering up, the Kaen of this universe growled, "Alright then, who are you and what are you here for?"

He chuckled darkly, "I think the questions should be _what_ am I and _who_ am I here for. I will be a god, assuming I'm not already, and _you_ are going to help me attain my godhood."

"Oh really?" Majin Kaen asked dryly, "And just how and why would I help you?"

The dark chuckle became full blown insane laughter as the ki blade returned, Nijuushin declaring, "I shall enjoy adding your soul to my collection." Before either could react, he sped forward, and, assuming they would regenerate like the others, proceeded to slice them up into pieces, before firing the killing blast; when he was done, not even ashes remained. Sated for the moment, the ki blade disappeared, and soon, so did he.

o-o-o

"So Gohan, how was your date?"

"It wasn't a date Kat," Gohan replied exasperatedly, "To take a page out of your book, we're just friends." When she didn't reply, he turned to face her, noticing that she was looking at him with one eyebrow raised. It suddenly clicked, **"Oh, right. _That_ date."** Gohan felt it safer to have this conversation in Saiya-Go.

Catching on, Kat piped up, **"Yes, _that_ date. So, how did it go?"**

Thinking back for a moment, Gohan replied, a slight far away look in his eyes, **"It went... good. Surprisingly good."**

A little annoyed, Kat cried, **"Is that all you're gonna say? 'Good'? I went to all that trouble; I want _details!_"**

Gohan laughed quietly, replying, **"Alright then, I'll give you the details. I was surprised when Videl actually accepted, but judging by the way she launched into questions, I assume she used it as an excuse to grill me. I must admit, it was fun giving her the run around and riling her up. It also gave me a pretty clear understanding of where I stand in Videl's mind..."**

**"Oh really?"** Kat asked, her eyes twinkling; he had yet to work out whether that was a trick of the light, or something she could actually do herself. **"And where is that?"**

**"She wants to be with me, I can tell that."** Gohan replied with a shrug, **"But she's holding herself back. I'm not sure yet why, but I think it's because she feels she can't trust me. Can't say I blame her, with all the secrets I've been keeping from her."**

**"Oh bullshit!"** Kat replied with a dismissive shrug, **"Kaen and Pi have been keeping secrets from each other for ages, and they're still deeply in love. Hell, Pi didn't find out until Wednesday night that Kaen was in a band; she told me yesterday."**

**"I know, how much of a shock was that?"** Gohan commented, more a statement than a question; seeing how surprised Kat was that he knew, he added, **"He told me Saturday when I grilled him about why he was in the city."**

Kat just growled to herself, **"Was I the only one who didn't know?"** Shaking her head a little, she said, **"We're getting off topic; what are you gonna do about Videl?"**

Gohan just smirked, **"The same thing I've been doing all week. Thanks for the food by the way."** He said no more, continuing on his way to class alone, and leaving Kat to stew about just what he'd been doing all week.

o-o-o

"You know, some part of me feels bad about doing this to Videl, but a greater part of me enjoys it..."

Kaen looked up from his current position, lying down on the ledge of the school roof, looking at his spiky-haired friend and saying, "Doing what? Trying to find out how much she likes you?"

Looking a little bashful, Gohan replied, "Well, kind of, yeah, but its more _what_ I'm doing to find that out; confusing her, baiting her, teasing her. I know almost as fact that she practically ruled me off her Saiyaman suspects list after Tuesday, so what do I do? Confound her by me acting like Saiyaman, and Saiyaman acting like me..."

Kaen sighed, closing his eyes again as he lay back down, hands behind his head; Gohan had said he wanted to talk at lunch, and, seeing the topic of conversation, Kaen realised they would be doing no fighting today. Getting comfortable again, Kaen commented offhandedly, "This wouldn't be happening if you just bedded the girl and got it over with."

"I can't do that!" Gohan spluttered.

"That a fact?" Kaen asked, opening his eyes again and staring at the pacing demi-Saiyan. "Can you honestly look me in the eye and say you don't want to mate with Videl?" He pointedly avoided saying her last name; it left a bad taste in his mouth, and he was starting to think more of the girl than her surname allowed.

Gohan did look him in the eye for a while, before dropping his head, mumbling, "You're right, I _would_ love to bond with Videl, but it's not that easy..."

"Cut the crap!" Kaen spat, sitting up, "Does your blood not scream to you that she's the one? If so, I fail to see the problem."

Gohan sighed, "Kaen, I may have been raised as a Saiyan these past seven years, but I was raised as a human the eleven years prior, so you'll excuse me if my human side wins out a little more often."

"And that's what makes you weak." Kaen shot back, standing up and walking over to Gohan; the half Saiyan was his friend, the first real friend he'd ever made that wasn't either a hand-me-down or a friend of a friend, and as such, he felt it was his responsibility to see his friend through his relationship woes. Of course, it was his rite to have as much fun in doing so as possible. "You spend too much time second guessing yourself; you should learn to trust your instincts."

"The last time I listened to my instincts, my dad died." Gohan grunted sourly.

Kaen knew he was treading on dangerous ground now, but he pressed on regardless, "That was bloodlust, not instinct. You were eleven, and hardly in a normal situation for _anyone_ of that age, even a Saiyan."

"That's beside the point," Gohan growled. "I may have started accepting my Saiyan heritage, but it's still not _me_. It's a part of who I am sure, but it doesn't define my life."

"Like it did Goku?" Kaen pointed out. "You have _got_ to stop thinking of Saiyans as ruthless, animalistic killers. Your father may not have had the Vegeta-Sei influence to his destructive tendencies like most of us have, but he was no less a Saiyan than I am, or Vegeta is; he still had the warrior's pride, the desire to get stronger, the love of fighting and food, and the fighting instinct. He just didn't let it control him, _he_ controlled _it_."

Gohan was beginning to realise that this was a losing battle, so he tried a different tactic, saying, "Look, I'm just not ready to accept someone else into my heart. What if I opened myself up to Videl and she didn't feel the same way about me as I did her? What if she wasn't willing to spend the rest of her life with me? I admit, I love the idea of mating with Videl, starting a family, living happily ever after, but I'm not willing to try until I know she's not going to leave. I'm still getting over dad leaving. I mean, I try to honour his memory by protecting the planet he loved, fighting crime and so on, but..."

"Oh, a fine way to honour his memory too," Kaen scoffed; again, he knew that he was dancing blindfolded through a minefield here, but if Gohan was going to kill him (which he almost certainly would) Kaen was going to make sure he'd spoken his mind. "Your father may not have flaunted himself off to the world like Satan does, but nonetheless he was proud of what he did, of what he could do. You? You hide behind a mask, as though you were ashamed of who and what you are. Doesn't sound like much of an honour to me."

"You're one to talk 'Phoenix'," Gohan quipped.

Kaen just snorted and rolled his eyes, "Please, you're going to have to do better than that. I go by 'Phoenix' now because I've gone by 'Phoenix' for years, and my people know who I am. When Saiyans from my time hear the name 'Phoenix' they immediately know of me, First Class Saiyan Kapskaen, son of Avarrdo and April, the only Saiyan game enough to openly revolt against Frieza. With you, however, outside of your little circle of friends, no one hears the name 'Saiyaman' and links it with the son of the deceased legend Son Goku, do they?" Seeing Gohan had nothing to say, he added, "Your father died because he wanted you to live, because he knew this planet, and his legacy, would be in safe hands. I'd hate to think he was wrong..."

--

Videl paused at the top of the stairwell, pressing her ear to the door. She had a feeling that Gohan and Kaen were holding back in PE, so she felt she had to see them fighting when they didn't know anyone was watching, if only to truly know where she stood. She'd thought she'd find them on the roof of the school, and she was right, but unfortunately it didn't sound as though they were fighting; well, not physically anyway. It sounded like they were arguing...

'Well, this presents an interesting opportunity,' Videl thought to herself with a smirk, 'Those two are so tight-lipped normally, but people always reveal things they don't mean to during arguments. Maybe I can find out something interesting I can use against them to get the full story.' She focused her attention to listening in; the door was a little on the thick side, but if she listened hard enough, she could make out their voices clearly.

--

Gohan rounded on his friend, the only male friend he had that wasn't once his father's; well, not counting the two green skinned men that lived on the top of the world. Standing up to his full height, which was a full six inches taller than Kaen, he said, "My father died because of Cell, because he was trying to protect me. I could have done something, I could have prevented it, but I hesitated, and now he's dead, because of me. Heck, if I'd just done what he asked in the first place, he wouldn't have _had_ to die."

--

Videl was a little shocked by this; just who was Gohan's father that he was killed by Cell? And what did he mean by 'I could have prevented it'? If he was killed by Cell, why didn't he come back with the rest of the people Cell had killed after the games? This was just gaining her more questions, but it was early days yet...

--

Getting a little angry at Gohan's attitude, Kaen barked, "Oh wake up to yourself boy, enough with the pity party. Cell is dead; vengeance has been served. Your father lived a hero's life, saving this miserable mud ball from destroying itself many times and asking for nothing in return; he even took the title as Number One Under Heaven. He died a hero's death, protecting the one's he loved from harm, and there is no greater honour for a warrior of his calibre; would you rather he have died in his bed?"

Gohan just turned away, grunting sourly, "He didn't have to die..."

Growling to himself, Kaen decided he'd heard quite enough, barking, "Did you listen to _nothing_ I told you ten years ago?"

--

Videl was a little surprised at this comment; what advice could Kaen have had to give ten years ago that would carry weight even now? He would've been ten years old... All things considered, she found herself really empathising with Gohan; after all, she herself had lost a parent, her mother dying so long ago she couldn't even remember how old she was. Gohan obviously still hadn't gotten over his father's death, and here was Kaen, his supposed friend, basically telling him to get over it. Setting the thought aside, she turned her attention back to listening.

--

"Of course I listened!" Gohan shouted back, "You told me that if I wanted peace, I had to prepare for war, and for the past decade I've been training, to prepare myself for any coming conflict. You told me to be proud of my heritage, and I spent the time to learn about it."

"Knowing your history is only _half_ the job," Kaen retorted dryly, "As you yourself said just before, you still haven't _accepted_ and _embraced_ your heritage." Drawing himself up to his full height, Kaen added, his voice almost loud enough to carry past the roof, "And you forgot the most important one of all!"

"Oh yeah?" Gohan drawled, "And what would that be?"

With another growl, Kaen drew back his fist and struck Gohan across the face with all his strength, the sound echoing down the stairwell where Videl still hid, as he shouted back, "Don't get smart with me boy! I told you not to let it turn inward; that no matter what happened in your life, you couldn't let it own you. True to my guess, something _did_ happen, and what did you do? YOU LET IT OWN YOU!"

--

Despite how she felt about Kaen, she _did_ have to admit that it was good advice, not to let tragedy own you. When her mother died, she herself could have let it own her, let herself wallow in misery, but she knew her mother wouldn't have wanted her to be sad, so she tried to carry on her life, for her mother. Her father, however, had let the loss of his wife own him, and he gradually became more and more distant from Videl, as he drew in upon himself. Now, she barely recognized the man.

--

Picking himself up, Gohan's tail started lashing about, a sign of his anger; Gohan, unlike Kaen, never had his tail act up. "You just don't get it do you?" Gohan yelled back angrily, "He died because of _me_; Cell may have killed him, but his blood is on _my_ hands! And to make matters worse, his death was pointless; Cell came back, and stronger than before! Because of my mistake, Goten had to grow up without ever knowing his father, and kaasan had to raise him for _seven_ years without her husband."

--

'Seven years?' Videl wondered in amazement, 'Gohan's dad's been dead for seven years, and he's _still_ this torn up about it?' She rolled her eyes, 'Of course it was seven years ago; he said Cell killed him. They must have been really close...' Videl swiftly kicked down the jealousy that arose as soon as that thought registered; it was hardly Gohan's fault that she'd never been close to her father, and couldn't even _remember_ her mother. 'Wait a minute; Goten? Gohan has siblings? How come he never told me?'

--

"Big FUCKING deal!" Kaen shouted, the force of his voice actually rattling the stairwell door a little. Raising himself up to full height again, and floating a little for good measure, Kaen barked, "Get over yourself! Sure, you made one mistake. You cost one man his life, one woman her husband, two boys their father, and a dozen or so people their close friend; big deal! I made one mistake and I _crippled_ my WHOLE FUCKING RACE! Frieza destroyed Vegeta-Sei to get back at _me_. A planet containing no less than ten billion Saiyans was wiped out, because of me, and now you'd be lucky to find a quarter million Saiyans in the whole galaxy."

--

Videl was, to say the least, blown away by this little revelation. 'Holy shit! Kaen is a... an... an alien! Wait, that means Pi and Kat are aliens too!' Apparently, however, Kaen wasn't done yet...

--

"You think you're the only one with blood on your hands?" Kaen asked, now looming over the taller Gohan. "I have no less than _eighteen_ counts of genocide to my name, and that's not including neither the THOUSANDS of people I killed on planets I _didn't_ destroy, nor the ten billion odd I killed vicariously, like you claim you did your father. You think you're the only victim of pointless death? I had not one, but _five_ people die trying to save me, and from what? Not the end of the world, but just some albino tyrant who decided I was too strong for my age, and wanted me killed before I became a problem. And did _I_ get vengeance for their deaths? NO! YOUR father defeated Frieza. HE never had to suffer through Frieza's reign. HE never had to watch as _everything_ he held dear was _ripped_ _away_ from him by some _sadistic self-appointed_ dictator. HE got the vengeance that was RIGHTFULLY MINE!"

--

Videl pressed her ear hard against the door, so hard it almost hurt, but she heard nothing, so obviously the two guys on the other side were silent for now. She didn't want to think too heavily on what she'd heard; not yet anyway. She had plenty of time to think when there wasn't the chance she'd miss something important.

--

Scrubbing a hand through his hair, and yet, in true Saiyan fashion, not changing it a bit, Kaen sighed, muttering, "Sorry, I shouldn't have gone off like that. It's my problem, and I shouldn't take it out on you."

Slightly stunned, Gohan replied, "Uh, no problem. That's what friends are for. Kami... I had no idea... I mean..." Recovering slightly, he added, a little angry again, "I didn't exactly have an easy life either you know?"

Kaen just laughed dryly, "I know, I know. I'm not trying to say you had it easier than me or anything; it's all relative. I just want you to know that, I dunno, you're not alone, or something. I'm not good with this emotional crap..."

"No man, I get it." This moment, Gohan idly realised, was the point where some men would share a chaste, manly, reassurance type hug, but he knew that Kaen, with his warrior roots, was hardly the type for hugs, and might even be offended by it. Thinking out loud, Gohan mused, "So that's why you don't live with the others in New Saiya... You blame yourself, so you feel you owe them..."

Kaen's mood did a total 180 as he barked harshly, "I owe them nothing! They abandoned me, cast me out, and they were destroyed for it! If anything, _they_ owe _me_ for rounding them up and bringing them here!"

This confused Gohan a great deal, and he didn't like being confused; it happened so rarely he didn't know how to handle it. One minute, Kaen's saying the blood of about ten billion Saiyans was on his hands, and the next he's saying it was their own fault? What gives? "What do you mean, abandoned?" He asked, his confusion showing.

Kaen sighed, calming down a bit before saying, "Know why I was planet-hopping for four years before winding up here?" Gohan just shook his head, so Kaen went on, "Well, it's because I was basically unofficially exiled. See, I got too strong too quickly for Frieza's liking, so he wanted me dead, and the late King Vegeta the forty-fourth, being the spineless coward he was in all things Frieza, caved. It was by luck alone I survived the trap he sent me into, but my team, including my five adopted brothers, all friends of my late older bro Korin, weren't so lucky. I spent the next four years running and hiding, trying to avoid being captured, or killed, all the while striking back at the albino bastard that started it all."

"And then she found you again?" Gohan supplied.

Kaen just sighed again, "Yeah, then she found me again, and the rest, as you humans say, is history."

Gohan grinned wryly, "Well Kapskaen, I thought _I_ was dealt a shit hand in the game of life, but this..."

Kaen just laughed, but that too had a wry sound to it as he replied, "Welcome to my world Celloto. I'm sure you will find your stay most _un_comfortable."

--

Videl walked away, numb to everything around her. She didn't particularly feel like attending the rest of the day's classes so she headed home; if anyone asked, she'd just say she was called out. Kaen, by his own admission, was an alien from outer space, and an unrepentant killer at that; and to think, she once thought the biggest secret she'd find out was that Gohan was Saiyaman, and Kaen Phoenix. She hadn't really learnt much about Gohan, other than that he had a deceased father, and a younger brother, neither of which she remembered him ever mentioning before. But Kaen... She'd learnt enough about him to write a book. Slowly, a smirk spread across her face; she could use this, she knew she could. The question was, how? This required investigation, and planning.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

The plot thickens. I'm honestly not sure if Gohan's mentioned Goten to Videl and co or not, so unless I've mentioned it somewhere else in the story, assume not.

I actually went back and revised the argument scene after writing _Transitions_, because a scene I'd added to that gave me an idea for something different to add to this. Also, before anyone asks, yes, _Transitions_ was written after this chapter. I'd taken a hiatus in the middle of writing _The Phoenix Chronicles_ to write this series, and when that was finished, went back and finished it off. _Transitions_ was written after that as a bridge between the two series..


	24. Birthday Surprise, part 1

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 22 - Birthday Surprise, part 1

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He tapped his foot impatiently, grumbling irritably under his breath; she was late. This was happening more and more frequently, and it was really starting to get on his nerves. He was just about to give up and go home when he noticed her running up, and as she stopped to catch her breath he barked, "You're late."

Still panting a little, she replied, "Sorry, I just couldn't get away from the family. Lime almost started crying when she found out I was going to be gone for a couple of months, Oran wouldn't let go of my leg, and even Korin was saying how spending too much time out in the Wyld was bad, but I eventually got rid of them, assuring them I'd be fine."

Still in a bit of a bad mood, he muttered, "Sorry I'm such an inconvenience on your life."

Breath caught, she sighed, "Kaen, don't be like that. It's not like that, it's just... Well, you don't have siblings, so you don't know how hard it is to get away from them sometimes. I really do want to spend this time camping with you, but they just didn't want me to go."

Sighing himself, he rubbed his temples, saying, "Sorry, just got a bit of a headache. I had to sit through my own lecture about the 'dangers of the Wyld' from dad, and to top it off, I've got a feeling something bad's gonna happen today." Shaking his head, he added, "But enough of that; it's past time for a spar."

With a grin, the two of them dropped into their respective stance, before leaping at each other, fists and feet flying. There was no need for her to set down any stuff, or to set up camp, or anything like that; these 'camping trips' were more survival camp than anything else, with the two surviving with whatever they had on, and whatever they could scrounge up in the Wyld.

The Wyld was the general name given to the wastelands of Vegeta-Sei, the areas outside of the cities, and the forested areas; the planet was a wondrous blend of technology and wasteland, with small reserves of grasslands and forests surrounding the cities, and many of those terraformed to ensure the planet's continued survival. Many of the cities were built by the Tuffles, the planet's previous occupants, and much of the wastelands were left over from the battle for planetary control fought long ago.

Much of the wastelands resisted terraforming, however, and it was these areas that made up the true Wyld; great volcanos, dense rainforests, vast swamplands, ruins of ancient cities from a time before even the Tuffles, and much more. Many of these areas gave off what researchers had dubbed 'Wyld Radiation', mutating the plants and animals in the area to reflect the radiation they gave off; much of those in the volcanic areas were highly resistant to heat, for example. This radiation was also known to affect Saiyans, but due to their already protean, shape shifter nature, as evidenced by their Oozaru transformation, the effects differed; more often than not, they became elementally aligned. This element alignment was a dual-edged sword, because on one hand, a certain aspect of your abilities was highly strengthened, but on the other, often it limited the techniques available to you; plus, researchers were yet to be aware of any possible long-term side effects.

Most Saiyans were unaware of the powers of the elements, despite their subtle application in every attack; those Saiyans just used ki, and went on oblivious with the hidden effects. Very little knew about the Spirit energy used in the Power Ball artificial moon technique, or the Earth energy used in the area destruction attack dubbed 'Giant Storm'. A few however, mostly technique researchers like Kaen's father Kellre, were not only aware of the elements behind everything, but could control them. Kaen himself could also control the elements, as could Pi, but theirs was a control granted through Wyld mutation; Kaen was aligned to Fire, from his time spent exploring the volcanoes, and Pi was aligned to Earth, from her time amongst the overgrown rainforests. The difference was, thanks to his father's genetics, Kaen also had a limited control over the others.

After close to half an hour of hand-to-hand combat, the two progressed to ki techniques, and it was here that Kaen had the prime advantage. His battle aura shifted from it's usual red to a deep, forest green; the colour of Earth. Cupping his hands to the side, he charged up a deep green ball of ki, firing it with a smirk and a cry of "Titan Cannon!"

Pi dove to the side, and the blast sheared straight through the trees behind her; it didn't manage much though, as, in the same way it resisted terraforming, the Wyld resisted damage, and the trees would be regrown in, at most, a month. Standing up again, her tail bristling with anger, Pi barked, "Damnit Kaen, stop using my own attacks against me! You know I hate that!"

He continued to smirk back at her. About a year ago, in the standard calendar, Kaen had worked out how to simulate control over the other four main spheres of elemental power: Earth, Air, Water, and Void (or Shadow, as some people called it), to go with his mastery of fire; he still couldn't properly use Spirit, but that was a minor issue he was yet to work out. This ability, while yet to be perfected, allowed him to use techniques that he normally wouldn't have been able to use with his alignment to Fire, so he decided that, in the spirit of his father, he would research techniques, and what made them tick. To this end, he 'collected' techniques, and now knew pretty much every technique of every Saiyan on Vegeta-Sei, all of which he could use at will though a minor attunement to the appropriate sphere.

He raised a hand to about shoulder level, as his aura switched to yellow; the colour of Air. Charging a blast, he declared, "Alright then, how's this? Bomber DX!" One of General Nappa's techniques. Again Pi dove to the side, but by the time she was on her feet, he already had another blast prepared, his aura now a light blue, or cyan, based on the light; the colour of Lightning, one of the lesser elements made by combining Fire and Air (he was yet to understand the colour, based on the combination). "Riot Javelin!" One of Drill Sergeant Bardock's favourite moves.

Again Pi hit the dirt, but this time, she sprang up and raced towards him, the two trading blows once more before he grabbed her arm, using her momentum to throw her over his shoulder, spinning around as his aura shifted again, this time to black; the colour of Void. There was some scepticism as to whether Void and Spirit were true elements, but the current theory was that they were just two sides of the _same_ element, and that to attain true mastery over them, you needed to find this parent element; according to Kellre, he was about ten standard years from achieving this.

Cupping his hands back to near his hip, in what was a remarkable awkward position, he prepared the young prince's signature move, a deep purple blast; "Gallick Gun!" Pi managed to phase out at the last second, and the blast sheered straight through the mountain range a few miles away. Like normal elemental alignment, his simulated attunement was a double-edged sword; on one hand, his versions of techniques were always stronger, given that they were being fed by elemental ki instead of basic ki, but, because they weren't _his_ techniques, he had less control over them, both in their use, and their stability. Several times, attacks had collapsed back in on themselves, severely injuring him; this proved to be one of those times.

With an almighty purple explosion, Kaen was sent flying backwards, smashing clear through half a dozen trees before coming to rest in a cliff face; currently, the two were in a valley. Pi rushed over, almost frantic, as she asked worriedly, "Kaen, are you alright?"

Pulling himself slowly out of the rock wall, he just muttered, "Ow. That hurt." Gently brushing her hands away, he added, "I'm fine, I'm fine. Just need a little rest, that's all."

"Don't worry, you can have all the rest you want. In Hell." A new voice interjected; the voice had a strange echo quality to it, almost like there were several people with identical voices speaking in near unison. Looking up, the young couple didn't even have the energy to gape in shock at the person they saw, nor the energy to dodge the massive blast coming their way. Kaen's final thought in this world was a remarkably cynical one, one he shared with his mate; 'See, I _knew_ something bad was going to happen today.'

o-o-o

As consciousness slowly returned to Pi, the raven-haired Saiyan noticed a few things. First, judging by the warmth against her back, it was morning, but not _early_ morning, as it took a while for the sun to reach the point in the sky where the light through their window would reach her. Second, from the sensations her head were sending her, there was a hand slowly running through her hair; obviously, Kaen.

"Mmm," she murmured contently, snuggling into him further, "That's nice..." Without her meaning to, a soft purr began to rise up out of her throat.

Kaen chuckled softly, saying, "And I thought Kat was the feline in the family," before, for amusement sake, he began gently scratching her under the chin with his other hand.

Pi had to admit, even to herself, that it did feel strangely good, so she didn't fight him off; instead, she muttered tiredly, "Not that I mind, but why are you doing that?"

He stopped scratching under her chin, returning that arm to holding her against him, while continuing the stroking motion with the other hand, before replying, "I wanted to wake you up, but I couldn't bring myself to do it, so I thought I'd just enjoy my time with you and let you wake up on your own."

Yawning, Pi asked, "What time is it?"

"About nine," came the reply.

Now fully awake, Pi almost exclaimed, "Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"

With a shrug, Kaen just answered, "You looked too beautiful to wake. Plus, it's Saturday, and I figured you could use the extra sleep after the past four late nights."

Sitting up on the bed, and stretching to work the sleep out of her muscles, the girl asked, "So, what're your plans for the day?" She knew that it was both of their birthdays today, and remembered that she herself had fairly big plans for tonight, but Kaen knew neither of these things.

A smile on his face, Kaen replied, "Well, I _did_ promise you last week to take you shopping this weekend, so how about we make good on that promise?"

She froze mid stretch, arms still extended over her head. She was almost convinced she was still asleep, and just having a very lucid dream; she couldn't have heard what she thought she did, right? Making sure to speak slowly, she asked, "You want to take me shopping?"

His smile widened a bit, "Well, not _just_ shopping. I figured we could hit the mall, do a little shopping, raid an all-you-can-eat place for lunch, maybe catch a movie, that sort of thing; really make a day of it, just the two of us."

Her shell-shocked look deepened as she realised that no, she was _not_ dreaming; "_You_, want to take me _shopping_?"

He chuckled a bit again, replying, "Is that so hard to believe? I've never really had a problem shopping with you; it's when you drag everyone else along that the problem arises. Besides, with the capsule tech this planet has, I don't even need to carry anything, so all the negatives about the shopping spree goes away." Turning serious, but still smiling warmly at her, he added, "Look Pi, there's nothing more important to me in the universe than you, and it's time I started showing you that more; even that disastrous trip we had with the family while still in space was worth it to see you happy. I love you, and..."

He was cut off rather sharply as Pi threw herself at him bodily, crashing into him with a massive Saiyan hug and knocking him back into a prone position on the bed, as she kissed him as though both their lives depended on it. When she broke the kiss some five minutes after (thanks to their Saiyan heritage and it's large lung capacity), he could see the beginnings of tears in her eyes, but both the massive smile on her face and the feelings radiating through the bond showed him they were tears of joy. Almost overcome with emotions, Pi managed to whisper, "I love you too..." before kissing him again; she always went weak at the knees whenever he said those three simple words...

o-o-o

It was about half an hour later that the two finally emerged from their room, dressed for the day ahead, with Kaen's arm around Pi's shoulder, and their tails intertwined (which was basically the Saiyan version of holding hands). Walking into the kitchen, they saw Kat holding a piece of toast in her mouth as she buckled up her boots, and, finishing that, the girl took it out with one hand, waving at them with the other as she said, "Hey guys, you're finally up; don't worry sis, I already grabbed some breakfast. I'm gonna spend the day with Leo, so I gotta leave soon; we were gonna hang out for a bit before he took me to meet his family."

At the massive grins that appeared on the Saiyan couples face's, she growled, "No, we're just friends!" Sighing, she added, "Look, I'll level with you. Yes, I _would_ like him to be my boyfriend, but _no_, for now we're just friends; hopefully, before the day is out we'll be past the 'just friends' stage." Grabbing the last of her stuff, she sped out of the house and blasted off, with both Kaen and Pi yet to say a word to her.

Still grinning, Pi detached herself from her mate, moving to prepare the two of them breakfast, but she was in for another surprise this morning. Following her into the kitchen, Kaen asked, "Can I help?"

She spun around to face him, staring at him incredulously, "You can cook?"

He shrugged, "Well enough to get by; you didn't think I spent four years eating at restaurants and such did you? Sure, my cooking is nothing compared to anything you can do, but I know enough not to screw up anything you start." She just shook her head slowly in wonder, and the two began breakfast together. With both of them working, breakfast was prepared in record time, and consumed almost as fast as it came out. Thus, by ten they were ready to go.

Standing in front of the house as Kaen locked up, Pi mused out loud, "Hm, how to get there. I mean, I like holding on to you on the bike, but I don't want to take that long to get there..."

She let out a small squeak of surprise as Kaen scooped her up in his arms, holding her against his chest as he blasted off in the direction of Satan City. Grinning down at her, he said, "Is this a suitable compromise?" She answered him with a smile, wrapping her arms around his neck and snuggling back into his chest like she'd woken up this morning. Before too long, and far too soon for both their liking, they arrived in the city, landing on the rooftop car park, and the day of shopping and fun began.

o-o-o

"Hey Kat, not to rush you or anything, but when am I gonna meet _your_ folks?"

The redhead looked over at her blue-haired crush as the two walked; the two were just leaving the ice cream parlour they'd agreed to meet up in, _after_ sampling the cool treats of course. Taking a moment to get the phrasing right, she replied, "Well, if you want we can pay them a visit tomorrow."

A confused look at his face, he looked back at her, asking, "Visit? What do you mean, don't you live with them?"

She just shook her head, "Nup, only kids they've got living with them are the twins. I live with Kaen and Pi."

"Why?"

Ah, now that was the question of the day. She didn't really know what to tell him; on one hand, she wanted to be honest with him, but on the other, she didn't want to scare him off. In the end, she decided on, "Just felt more comfortable living with my brother than I did with my parents." That seemed to satisfy the blue-haired boy, but in case it didn't, she changed the subject before he could question her on it further; "Hey, you _are_ coming to the club tonight right? The twins are gonna be there, so you should bring your siblings to meet them."

"I dunno," he mused, "I mean, I _want_ to, but mum might not allow me in a place that sells alcohol; she doesn't let me or Aeris drink yet, and I _really_ doubt she'd let the kids go. Dad might though."

"Well, they've got non-alcoholic stuff too Kaen said, and the owner _does_ let kids in the place so long as they're supervised; I mean, one of the gang has her kid sister there all the time," Kat reasoned, grinning a little before adding, "Hey, I can always try and talk your mother around if she doesn't let you guys go; I've been told I've got a bit of a silver tongue."

Leo laughed a bit, grinning back at her, "How can I say no to that face? Well, what's say we pay them a visit now and find out?" She just nodded energetically, and the two continued walking.

o-o-o

The raven-haired girl growled in frustration as she slammed her fists on the desk in front of her. Ever since she'd gotten home yesterday afternoon she'd been searching for information, but hadn't found one scrap of evidence; only hearsay and conjecture. Scowling, she got up, pacing around her room as she massaged her temples; like she usually did when she got frustrated, she had a headache.

With a sigh, she opened her eyes again, and the scowl slipped off her face as her eyes came to rest on the communicator watch the chief had given her; why she didn't think of that before she didn't know. Quickly picking the watch up, she activated the connection to police HQ, saying, "Videl here. I need to speak to the chief."

The chief's voice came back shortly, "What do you need Videl?"

Trying to hide a smirk, she replied, "I need you to do a total background search of someone."

"Who?"

The smirk started to break through, "Kaen Avarrdo."

The sound of keyboard clacking came through the speaker, showing her he was entering the name into his computer, and his voice came back moments later, "I'm sorry Videl, but it says here he has immunity; we're not allowed to investigate him."

This time, she let herself smirk, "Then I'm calling in a favour..."

o-o-o

Pi sighed to herself as she sank into the cushioned seat of the booth; after close to three hours of shopping, the couple had decided to grab some lunch. Kaen was currently off grabbing some food for her, while she grabbed a table. She couldn't keep the smile from her face all day; she was really enjoying herself, above and beyond the joy she felt at shopping in general. Perhaps it was because it was just her and the man she loved, or maybe because it had been his idea, or even that he was actually enjoying himself too, and she was feeding off his emotions; she wasn't sure exactly. All she knew is that they would have to do this again in the future.

She giggled to herself as she watched Kaen approaching; he had three plates, piled with food, balanced on each arm, another on his head, and one more on the tip of his tail. She wasn't sure whether he was using his ki to keep them balanced, or was just that good, but she wouldn't put either past her mate. Arriving at their table, he set the plates down, the one on his tail first, and the one on his head last, with four plates each. Sliding into the booth on the other side, he grinned at her, saying, "I know it's not much, but if nothing else it's a snack, and we can grab more when we're finished."

They _did_ end up making another trip, and one after that, but for both of those Pi came and helped him with the plates; he knew exactly what foods she liked, as she did him, but as amusing as it was she didn't want to lump everything on Kaen all the time. Finishing their meal, Kaen walked over to the cashier, pulling out a wad of bills he felt paid for the food they'd eaten, which was _actually_ enough to pay for the food three times over; it may have been an all-you-can-eat place, but the food was good, and he didn't feel like putting it out of business because they didn't cater to Saiyan appetites.

Pi was a little surprised when Kaen wrapped an arm around her shoulder, knowing how little he liked public displays, but she didn't fight it, merely resting her head against his shoulder as she wrapped her arm around his back. Enjoying the comfortable silence that had fallen over them, the pair headed towards the cinema, if only because they'd never been before.

o-o-o

"Mum, dad, I'm home!"

"Shh, keep your voice down," the pink-haired girl on the couch hissed, turning to face the door, "Dad stepped out for a minute, and mum's on the phone in the kitchen."

Leading the girl beside him into the lounge room, he said, "Hey Aeris, I'd like you to meet Kat; Kat, Aeris. You already know the twins."

Vincent and Gina were lying down on their stomachs in front of the TV, but, hearing their brother's voice they turned around, Gina chirping, "It's that nice lady from the other day." She jumped up and ran over to give Kat a hug; Vincent just shrugged and turned back to the TV.

Crouching down, she hugged the blonde girl back, messing up her hair, before standing up and extending a hand to Aeris, saying, "It's nice to meet you. Leo talks about you quite a bit."

Aeris just grinned, "Not as much as he talks about _you_ I'll bet. It's nice to meet you too, but I feel I already know everything about you; you're all Leo's talked about for a week now." The boy chuckled nervously as Kat blushed lightly.

The sound of a phone being hung up reached their ears, as a woman's voice called out, "Leo, is that you? I'm in the kitchen dear."

With a nod, Leo walked into the kitchen, Kat soon after. Motioning to the doorway, he said, "Mum, I'd like you to meet..."

"Kitty?" The green haired woman exclaimed, cutting her son off, "Is that you?"

Kat's eyes widened; only one person had ever called her 'Kitty'. "Tabby?"

The other woman nodded, running over to embrace her long lost friend. Pulling back to arms length, she exclaimed happily, "Wow, look at you huh? I never thought I'd see you again after you disappeared the day of the attack; where'd you go anyway? Ah, you can tell me later. You don't look a day over twenty; what's your secret?" Before she could reply, Tabitha, or Tabby, released her shoulders, turning to her son and saying, "Leo, I thought you were bringing home your girlfriend; sorry, 'female' friend."

The silence that descended on the room was deafening. Leo just stared wide-eyed at Kat, who just scuffed her foot against the floor; no one noticed the three listening in from near the doorway. Laughing nervously and rubbing the back of her neck, Kat muttered, "Wow, this is awkward..." When Leo's mother looked her way again, she said, "Uh, well Tabby, that would be me." When the older woman's eyes flew open in shock, she added, "See, the reason I don't look a day over twenty is because I'm not; I'm only nineteen. It's a long story..."

Tabitha and Leo just stared at her, clearly waiting for the explanation; Kat just coughed a bit, before saying, "Well, it goes something like this: I was travelling around space on my own for a while, and I wound up falling in with the Anti-Cold resistance. Long story short, me, my brother Kaen, our friends, and his whole family, wound up being thrown forward in time some forty years, which brings us to now."

Stunned, Tabitha just muttered, "But you don't have a brother called Kaen..."

Shrugging, she replied, "Not by blood, no, but he's my brother all the same."

Walking over to the table, Leo's mother just said dazedly, "I think I'm gonna need the long version... It's just a shame Tom's not here, because I'm going to have to explain it to him later..."

"Wait a minute!" Kat exclaimed, joining her old friend at the table; absently, she noticed Leo and his siblings walking closer so they could hear as well, "Tom? You married Tom? The same Tom who was determined he was going to be with me all those years?"

She just nodded, "One and the same. I'd always kinda liked him, but he'd been so busy chasing you I could never get him to notice me; when you left, it wasn't too hard to help him get over it, and the rest fell into place."

Blushing slightly, Kat asked, "Does... Did it leave a scar?" She didn't mention what 'it' was, but she didn't need to; she was referring to when she clawed his face. Tabby just shook her head, smiling at her friend, so she let out a sigh of relief, saying, "Good. I didn't really mean to hurt him, I was just in a bad place then. I'd almost been raped just before, so... Thank Kami Kaen was there that day."

"Hang on; Kaen?" Tabby asked, confused, "You've mentioned him before, as has Leo, and you've called him your brother. I _know_ you never had a brother called 'Kaen', so what do you mean he was there the day of the attack." Her eyes widening in slight fear, she added, "He wasn't taking part in the attack was he?"

Kat just laughed, "No, quite the opposite. He was there to stop it; well, _he_ claims it was just an excuse to bust some heads, but he stopped the attack all the same."

"PHOENIX!" Tabby exclaimed, standing up hastily, "Your brother is Phoenix? The same Phoenix that saved me from being crushed when the East tower came down?"

Kat looked at her, slight confusion in her eyes, "Kaen saved you that day? Oh, right, he did mention he saved someone by blowing a hole through a falling building; that must've been you. Yeah, that's him. He stopped the men who'd killed my family from raping me just after that." She herself was a little surprised at how easily she could talk about the most traumatic event to ever happen to her, but she assumed she'd moved on emotionally. Her eyes lighting up as an idea hit her, she said, "Hey, why don't you come down the club later? Kaen's gonna be there, so you can say 'hi' in person if you want to. I was already gonna ask if Leo, Aeris and the twins could come."

Tabitha smiled, her yellow eyes shining a little as she stood up, "I'd like that. Now, would you like a cup of tea or coffee? I've still got to get you to tell me what happened to you after you left. The long version."

"Coffee, please," Kat replied, turning to her crush and saying bashfully, "Hey, uh... This doesn't change anything does it? Me being an old friend of your mother?"

Shaking himself from his stupor, Leo just shook his head, replying, "No, it doesn't; well, not for worse in any case. I mean, it probably _should_ creep me out that you should, by right, be as old as my mother..."

"Older," his mother called from the bench, "She was older than me by about half a year."

"Right, older," Leo corrected, "But, it doesn't change anything. I still... like you a lot, so..."

Grinning, Kat turned to her old friend and called out, "Hey Tabby, do you have a problem with me dating your son?" Leo almost swallowed his tongue at the bluntness of her statement.

Laughing, Tabitha replied, "No, I see no problem with it, but I've got to get _you_ to tell Tom, if only so I can see his face when he hears that his old crush is dating his son."

"Hey mum," Aeris' voice cut in, "If Kat's one of us, do we need to keep up the disguise?"

A thoughtful look on her face as she brought over the two cups of boiling beverage, her mother replied, "I suppose not."

"Awesome!" With that exclamation, the pink-haired girl seemed to shift, her ears becoming feline, and fur growing over her body. The twins followed suit soon after, and Leo after them.

With a shrug, Kat changed back to normal as Tabby did, grinning a bit as she said, "It feels good to be able to be myself here. I should probably mention now, by the way, that you can feel free to turn up to the club like this; the guy's there don't care, and they already know _I'm_ not human, so..."

"Alright then," Tabby began, watching as her kids took their seats at the table, "Spill. How'd you get here?"

o-o-o

Videl scowled in the direction of the phone, whose ringing was distracting her from her work; it was her private line, so it had to be one of her friends, and that almost completely narrowed it down to Erasa, who was the only one to frequently call her. Wrenching the phone off the hook, she was just about to give the person on the other end of the line the rough side of her tongue when she heard the voice; it was very much _not_ Erasa. "Hey Videl," a clearly male voice said, "What are you doing tonight?"

"Gohan?" Videl replied, slightly shocked at hearing his voice, "Uh, nothing, really. Just catching up on some work." 'That should be a good enough cover story,' she thought to herself.

"Oh." Even with that simple a statement, his voice sounded a little... disappointed.

Videl, suddenly realising that this was _Gohan_ talking, who by the sounds of things was disappointed that she was busy tonight, quickly amended, "Uh, it's not too important, I could do it later. Why?"

His voice seemed to brighten a bit as he said, "Well, there's this big party down at Club Chaos tonight, everyone's gonna be there, and I was wondering if you wanted to go..."

"I don't know Gohan..." Videl mused, "I mean, poppa might not like me going to a club..."

"...with me."

Videl felt her heart trying to climb its way out of her throat, and before she'd even thought about her response her mouth had already answered, "Sure, where should I meet you?"

On the other end of the phone, Gohan felt a smile come to his lips as he answered, "How about we meet up at the mall, and go from there? Say around six? Oh, and don't expect to be home until late, but it's a Saturday, so it's not like there's anything important tomorrow is there?"

Videl smiled as well, replying, "Alright Gohan. Satan City Mall, six O'clock. See you there." Hanging up the phone, Videl mused to herself, "Now, what made me agree to that..."

--

As the phone line went dead, Gohan sighed, hanging up the receiver and muttering, "Now, what made me ask that..." He _knew_ that all sorts of things could go wrong, the least of which was Kaen openly flaunting his tail... 'Ah well,' he thought to himself, 'I might as well enjoy this express ride to Hell.'

o-o-o

She smiled to herself as Kaen flew her home, much like he'd flown her to the mall to begin with. The day had been a dream to her from start to finish. The movie Kaen had opted to see had actually been both action _and_ romance, to her surprise (she didn't know he'd heard of it from Gohan, but that wasn't the point), the two had, to her great surprise, actually _shared_ popcorn and a drink, and afterwards, he'd taken her out for dinner, so she didn't have to cook. And the day wasn't over yet; Kaen had a big performance on at the club, one he'd even invited Kat and the twins to.

The only reason they were returning home at all was: a) to get changed into something different; b) to pick up the twins. Avarrdo, April, Kellre, Raene, and Truniz had all been invited as well, but they'd chosen not to come this time, all for different reasons; well, Avarrdo and April had confirmed they would _not_ be attending, because the twins being absent was an excuse to have a night to themselves, but the others hadn't replied at all, so she just assumed they weren't going to be there. Nevertheless, it was shaping up to be a memorable night.

Pi sighed contently as he carried her inside, only pausing to open the front door; it felt good to be home, even if it was only going to be for a short while. Hopping out of his arms, she began stowing away her purchases, calling over her shoulder, "How long do we have 'til we have to be there?" However much she would have preferred to stay where she was, they _were_ on a schedule.

"Allowing time to grab the kids and fly there, we've still got about an hour and a half to ourselves."

The smile on her face shifted to a smirk as he said that; it was the tone of his voice that gave it away. Turning to face him, she asked slyly, "Say, you wouldn't happen to have one of your guitars around here would you?"

A matching smirk answered her, "I've got an acoustic in our room. Why?"

"Well," she began, walking slowly over to him and resting her hands on his chest, "I was kinda hoping for a... private... performance." There was no need to say which song she wanted to hear; he knew she wanted the one he wrote for her. Picking her up again, the two retired to their bedroom for a little... private time.

o-o-o

She tapped her foot impatiently, her raven hair swinging as she glanced both ways down the street; he was late, and there were few things she hated more than waiting. Why had she even come here? Just because he asked her to come to some stupid club... What had she been thinking when she agreed to that? Her father would kill her if he found out... 'Actually,' she thought wryly to herself, 'that's probably reason alone to do this.' Nevertheless, when he showed up Son Gohan was going to get such a talking to...

The sound of an approaching car drew her attention, but she quickly brushed it from her mind; the midnight blue car, one of the new model Dodge Viper remakes unless she missed her guess, looked a little too state of the art for a country boy like Gohan. However, to her shock, the car slowed down next to her, the windows lowering to reveal Son Gohan himself, an apologetic grin on his face as he said, "Sorry I'm late; traffic was a nightmare."

She opened her mouth to commence the yelling, but her breath disappeared as he climbed out of the car. His outfit was simple enough, made up of a pair of blue jeans, still fairly new by their colour, a tight black t-shirt, and a deep blue vest, but he was still drop-dead gorgeous to her. In the end, all she managed to get out was a dazed, "Uh... 'S alright..."

Still smiling at her, Gohan offered her his arm, saying, "So, would you like a lift, or do you want to stay here?"

With a smile of her own, she accepted the gesture, and in true gentleman style, no doubt the results of his mother's disciplinary tactics, Gohan even held the door for her. Once he was back behind the wheel, Videl commented, with a hint of wonder to her voice, "Wow Gohan, nice car. No offence, but how did a country boy like you manage to get one of these? I'd heard there were only a dozen ever made."

"None taken," Gohan replied in a good-natured tone, "In truth, I personally would never have been able to buy one. It was a gift from my grandfather for my eighteenth birthday. He's, well, he's well off."

Videl dropped the subject; obviously he was still hiding something from her, but it was a nice night, and she was in too good a mood to ruin it by turning a friendly conversation into the Spanish Inquisition. "So Gohan, where are we going for this little jaunt?" she asked cheerily, "I remember you saying something about a club?" When no response came right away, she angled her head to look at him, and could have sworn she saw a light blush on his face, but assumed it was a trick of the light.

--

Gohan took a few moments to observe Videl, keeping one eye on the road, and taking in her appearance out of the corner of his other. Obviously, she'd gone to a little trouble to dress up for the occasion, wearing a pair of tight black capri's, and a dark red tank top, both of which were a lot more form fitting than she usually wore. He could also have sworn he saw the faintest hint of make-up, and smelt a hint of perfume, but he passed it off as his senses playing tricks on him; after all, why on Earth would Videl ever wear make-up or perfume?

Swallowing the lump that had developed in his throat, he decided to let follow the advice he was given and let his instincts tell him what to do, replying to her question with, "Well, in truth we don't have to be at the club until around 7:30-8:00, so I thought we'd head somewhere else first."

"Why Son Gohan," Videl teased jokingly, "You wouldn't be kidnapping little ol' me now would you?"

To her surprise, he laughed, replying, "Something like that." Seeing he'd captured her attention, he continued, "Well, from what I've seen of you these past few weeks, you don't strike me as the type to go out and have fun often, so, while I've got you here, I figured we'd work on changing that; get a bite to eat, hang out, that sort of thing. After all, we never did really get to hang out the other night 'coz you got called out."

Videl was suddenly very pleased she'd left her communicator watch at home; the police could handle crime in the city without her for one night. Swallowing to moisten her suddenly dry throat, she asked, "Gohan, are you asking me out?"

He turned to look at her, thankful they'd stopped at a red light, and smiled, replying half-seriously, "As friends, of course." He'd let her make what she wanted of that statement.

--

Inside, Videl was half disappointed, half giddy. On one hand, she was a little sad he wasn't _actually_ asking her out, but given that she'd been sending mixed signals his way, it was little wonder; yet, on the other hand, there was something in the tone of his voice, and hidden underneath the layers of warmth in his smile, that made her heart race as she realised that he felt that, given time, they _could_ be more than friends. The idea was looking better and better to her every day; it was almost to the point that, had she less restraint, she'd be throwing herself at him and pleading to have his children. Almost. As it was, she was more than happy to let him take her wherever he wanted, because she had no doubt that, regardless of what they did, it would be an enjoyable night, simply because it was spent in his company.

o-o-o

She sighed contently, stretching her arms as she rose, heading towards the wardrobe wearing nothing but a smile; she was going to have to make sure she had many more 'private performances' if they all ended like that. Trying to decide on something to wear, but wanting to fit in with the others, she turned to her mate, still lying relaxed on the bed, and asked, "Kaen, what were you planning on wearing? I know you're gonna knock 'em dead tonight, and want to make sure that what I've got matches."

"Well, then what you've got on now's fine," He replied, and she blinked at the seriousness in his voice. "I was planning on astounding them with my nakedness; death by indecency!" She blinked again, and once more, surprised by the fact he seemed 100 serious, until she eventually burst out laughing; this time, she _wasn't_ surprised when he joined in. (1)

Her stomach hurt from laughing so much, and she fell to her knees, gasping for breath as tears streamed from her eyes. After what had to be five minutes or more she managed to restrain her amusement to the occasional giggle fit, and managed to get out between giggles, "That was great; I haven't laughed like that in years."

He smiled back at her, "Well, you looked like you could use a good laugh, you looked so nervous. I don't know what _you_ have to be nervous about; _I'm_ the one who's going to be performing in front of a record crowd." Pi managed, if only barely, to hide now nervous she became again when he let that fact slip; she had good reason to be nervous.

Seemingly oblivious, Kaen added, "But you're right, we do need to get ready; Gohan left a message that Vegeta was taking Goten and Trunks, so we don't have to worry about them, but we still need to pick up the twins." Walking over to the wardrobe, which was filled with mostly Pi's clothes, he took a moment to look through them before pulling a few things out, saying, "These. They make you as beautiful as you really are, while hiding everything you don't want the world to see."

She smiled to herself again as she got dressed; this was the first time Kaen had ever picked clothes for her to wear - she had to admit he made a very good choice - and, judging from what she noticed him putting on, her outfit _did_ match his, just as she'd wanted. Grabbing their things, they locked up and headed out for the second time that day. The end had come to a very long, very memorable, and very enjoyable day, but the night was young, and it was shaping up to be every bit as memorable. If only Kaen knew what was coming...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

The longest chapter thus far, and still only half of a single day. Things are starting to fall into place, identities were revealed, and the dimensional hopping is drawing to a close.

Now, I'm aware I was a little verbose in the opening part of this chapter, but there _is_ a reason for that, but said reason probably won't come up much until the _next_ series, _Disturbance_, comes out, so just keep it in mind until then. Or, re-read this when the time is right, either is good.

For those who are unsure, the Tabitha mentioned in this chapter (Leo's mother) was first seen in the flashback section of chapter 15 of my first series, 'The Phoenix Chronicles', called Shattered Pride. I know, not much of a mystery considering she's only had three appearances in two whole series, but hey, I never said it would be a cure for cancer.

(1) This line comes from a web comic called VG Cats. ( www(dot)vgcats(dot)com )

Incidentally, there's a second, more subtle, reference to VG Cats in this series; well, two references really, but they're both part of the same thing. If anyone can work them out, let me know, and, I dunno, there might be a prize or something. In any case, I'd be interested to see if anyone can spot them.


	25. Birthday Surprise, part 2

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 23 - Birthday Surprise, part 2

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He looked up from his computer as he heard the automatic door to his lab sliding open, turning his chair to face whoever was entering his domain. Before the door was even half open, a pair of blurs raced in, attaching themselves to his legs with a cry of "Daddy!" and revealing themselves to be a pair of small children, a boy and girl. In the standard calendar, the twins were entering what other races referred to as the 'Terrible Twos', making them six months in the Saiyan calendar.

Their mother followed them in soon after, sighing tiredly and saying, "Sorry for bringing them here, I know you're busy, but..."

He waved her silent with a smile; he knew exactly why she'd brought them to see him. Smiling down at them, and messing their hair playfully, he said, "Hey there you two; you been giving your mother grief again?" They just beamed up at him innocently, and he playfully cuffed the boy behind one ear, not even using enough force to tilt his head, and saying, "You're such a terror sometimes Rash..." Pinching the girl's nose, again with almost no force, he added, "And you, little Tama, have got to stop following your brother into mischief." Gently prying them off his legs, he knelt down to their level, giving each a quick one-armed hug before whispering into their ears, "Why don't you go find your Uncle Korin and annoy him for a while?"

With a wide smile, the two ran off again at the same speed they ran in, and his mate just sighed tiredly as she sank into the seat near him; it may have been his private lab, but he always had time for his family, and had room for them accordingly. "Thanks," she muttered, "They've been running me ragged, and it's hard to keep up with them in my condition..."

He smiled warmly at her again as he walked over, crouching down in front of her and placing a hand on her stomach; though most Saiyans found it hard to believe given her age, but she was pregnant, and for the second time at that. In the footsteps of his father, he'd set aside fighting in favour of science, but instead of taking up a mechanical science, he'd chosen biochemistry, and about nine months, or three standard years, ago he'd made a breakthrough; a chemical compound that made it possible for Saiyan women to bear children before they turned five, in Saiyan years.

Obviously, this was quite the discovery, because no longer did the Saiyan race have to worry about dying out as a result of all females being killed in combat before they could bear children. Now, they could bear children almost whenever they liked, assuming they were at least three years and three months old, or sixteen in standard years; before that, the risks were too great.

That's not to say there weren't risks with the formula as is, such as the inability to reproduce for roughly two standard years after the first use (in fact, if not for their Saiyan healing factor, the damage caused by the acceleration to the female reproductive organs would make them barren for the rest of their lives), but there were benefits too, the most obvious being the ability to conceive at an earlier age than normal, and, as they found out, the length of the pregnancy being reduced to a mere six standard months instead of nine, with no negative side effects to the child (the negatives were to the mother). Needless to say, many believed these positives far outweighed the negatives, including his mate herself.

She had been the first to try the drug, when it was still in it's experimental stages; he'd warned her of the possible dangers, but she'd just smiled and said she trusted him, and that was that. Now, after having recovered from the first time, she had opted to again be the guinea pig for the new version; this time, she rationed that, as they already had children, if anything did go wrong their line would still continue, however much she wanted a large family. He'd asked her once how many children she wanted, but she just laughed and replied she wouldn't know until she got there.

His thoughts were interrupted as he felt the baby kick under his hand. Correction, _one_ of the babies kicking, because she bore twins, again; a quirk they'd found in the genetic make-up of his DNA almost guaranteed it. A few seconds later he felt another, and another, and he looked up to his mate's face wearing a look of awe.

"What is it?" She asked, instinctively afraid something was wrong.

"It... It almost feels like they're _sparring_ in there," he replied in a mildly shocked voice.

She just laughed, "Well, they're their father's children alright." While fighting may not have been his livelihood, he still spent his increasingly less free time training, and as he always said you could never start too early, even Rash and Tama were getting some of the most basic of basics at their age. "So how's the family? I haven't had a chance to catch up with them for a while." She knew he worked on and off with his father, so could get updates then.

"They're doing good," he replied, still with a hand on her stomach, "The pests are getting stronger, and Korin seems determined to find a mate and settle down; I think he's jealous that I've managed to start a family before him. When dad has time, he and your pop help me try and work the kinks out of the formula, so we're slowly making headway."

"That's good to hear," she smiled. She opened her mouth to say something else, but was cut off as he received a kick to the head from an unknown assailant, someone who's snuck up behind her and leapt over to attack her mate. She started to stand, preparing to defend herself and her unborn children if she had to, but before she'd gotten a foot, a blast was sent her way, one she didn't have time to dodge.

"You... You MONSTER!" he shouted, climbing to his feet, "How could you? She was..." He was abruptly silenced by another blast, as, for the twenty-second time across the Multiverse, Kaen and Pi knew no more.

--

His eyes widened in shock, and the red cloud fled from his mind as he was assaulted with his deceased double's memories; as often happened, the first memory to reach his mind was the surface thoughts of the newly deceased. No sooner had this memory registered than he fell to his knees, his body fighting to avoid throwing up the past ten meals he'd eaten. She had been pregnant somehow; how was he supposed to have known? He was almost used to killing himself and his mate over and over, but an unborn child? _HIS_ unborn child. It was too much, and soon his body lost the fight, retching up on the cold lab floor.

Standing up, and wiping his mouth, the red fog settled back in as his sanity once again faded to bloodlust. There were just two more to go before he had enough power to bring _his_ mate back, and _nothing_ would stop him.

o-o-o

Kaen smiled broadly at he stepped out onto the stage, to the cheers of those assembled. Everyone that was coming had arrived, introductions had been made, and it was time for the show to begin; well, in truth, he'd left Pi to make the introductions, but he had to go through the final preparations with the guys, so... Looking around the club, he could see that, with a few notable exceptions, it was moshing room only; even some of the tables had been removed so that the club could hold more people.

In the throng of patrons, there were all of four pockets of space. One was were the rest of the gang sat, at two of the few remaining tables, the crowd held back by his mate's glare; he noticed idly that Gohan was there with Videl, and Kat was there with Leo, the two kids he'd rescued, an unknown pink-haired girl, an orange-haired man, and a strangely familiar green-haired woman. The second space was near the bar, held by a rather short man who's hair made up for his lack of height, and what likely kept the others away, despite his relaxed demeanour, was his eyes, which seemed to instantly label everyone in the room as vastly beneath him; Vegeta. One of the remaining two spaces contained a couple holding a table all to themselves, a very tall man, and his partner, who, despite the beautiful face and motherly appearance, seemed outwardly as prone to violence as her other half; Kellre and Raene. The final space was occupied by a slightly taller than average man with a voluptuous woman by his side, who, every time someone would intrude upon their area, would send them scurrying back with a glare; Truniz.

'So, they decided to come after all,' he thought to himself amusedly. Stepping up to the microphone, and gesturing for silence, he said, "Be thou welcome in the House of Chaos for this, the tenth anniversary of its birth." The crowd erupted again, and he waited for them to calm before continuing, "I see some friendly faces out there..." He pointedly looked at Kellre and Raene; "...and some unfriendly faces." This time, he looked straight at Vegeta, a grin on his face; "Some newcomers..." Truniz, and more importantly, the unknown woman with him; "...and some regulars..." Pi; "...but most importantly, I see the largest turn-out in the history of the House of Chaos, and I personally would like to thank each and every one of you for coming here and making this a very special night." The crowd exploded into excited cheers again, and he let them go until quiet reigned once more before finishing, "Now then, with no further ado, let's get this party START-ED!"

--

It was almost an hour later, the mini-concert having raged on, when the time they'd set for the 'intermission' came up. Gesturing for silence, Kaen took the microphone off its stand, holding it to his mouth and declaring, "Thank you, you've been magnificent. It's about time we took a break, but before we do, I'd like to direct your attention to the flame-haired man at the bar, who I assume a lot of you have incorrectly mistaken for my father." All eyes in the club turned on Vegeta, but rather than drive them away, the prince stared up at Kaen, question in his eyes. "This next song is dedicated to you Vegeta, in loving memory of your dear departed father."

Vegeta contemplated glaring at the boy on stage, noticing the strings of sarcasm lacing his words, but decided not to; it wouldn't affect him anyway, so why waste the effort? Besides, he wasn't really angry; he knew that many of the Saiyans harboured a deep resentment towards his father, and with good cause. If anything, he was curious as to what the song was. Turning to the guys, Kaen whispered, covering the mike so as to not be heard, "Prepare to drop everything and bolt if he turns homicidal; I'll hold him off."

Kaen started playing, the music slowly working its way up in volume, accompanied by the cymbals, and later, by the bass, drums, and second guitar, as the song truly got under way. A grin on his face, Kaen sang, holding the microphone with his tail for the umpteenth time that night, "Wish I may, wish I might, have this I wish tonight. Are you satisfied? Dig for gold, dig for fame, you dig to make your name. Are you pacified?"

Still grinning, he was joined by Hawk, "All the wants you waste. All the things you've chased. And it all crashes down, and you break your crown. And you point your finger, but there's no one around. Just want one thing, just to play the king, but the castle's crumbled, and you've left with just a name."

Smirking broadly, Kaen cried, "Where's your crown King Nothing?"

Were it anyone else, Vegeta reasoned, he would have flown off the handle and started flinging blasts around, but, try as he might to deny it, he respected his equally flame-haired sparring partner slash diplomatic representative. As it was, Vegeta found he actually enjoyed the song; he didn't enjoy the laughter he heard out of the other Saiyans he sensed in the room, but oh well, good with bad and so on.

When the song finished, Kaen was greeted with uproarious applause, and he was shocked to see that Vegeta, of all people, was joining in. Locking eyes with the man, he could read everything from the simple gaze alone, and no words needed be spoken; he just nodded respectfully once, warrior to warrior, and the prince did the same. With a final wave to the crowd, Kaen headed backstage with the rest of the band; he had about an hour to spend with his friends before having to get back on stage, and he intended to use all of it, firstly by finding out who that familiar looking woman was.

o-o-o

"Well, who are all they then?" Kaen asked good-naturedly, directing the question to anyone; Oran and Lime had gone to the bar to get a drink, under his order, and he noticed somewhat amusedly that Videl had gone with them, most likely to try and pump them for information, but everyone else was still present.

It was Kat who answered, "This is Leo's family: his sister Aeris, the twins Vincent and Gina, his father Tom, and his mother Tabitha."

Turning to Tabitha, Kaen stated directly, "I know you. I know I know you, but I can't place where from."

A look of wonder on her face, she replied, "You saved my life, Phoenix."

Rolling his eyes, he commented jokingly, "Well, that narrows it down to about half a million people, at least."

With a start, she realised that, by reflex, she'd assumed human guise, so shifted back, saying, "Does this help?"

Kaen just smiled, "Ah, right. Neko-Sei. Falling building. I remember now. Good to see you're alright." Something seemed to click in his mind, and he commented, "You know, I knew something was familiar about Leo the first time I saw him; his ki felt similar to Kat's. Small world huh?"

"It gets better," Kat added, "Tabby and I were friends way back when, and Tom had a crush on me when we were younger."

Kaen burst out laughing, and when he grinned at Tom, the older man actually blushed a little as he replied, "Yes, the irony isn't lost on me that my son could land the girl that I couldn't." Smiling at his wife, he added, "However, I wouldn't have it any other way, and as long as they're happy, I'm happy."

Still grinning, Kaen turned to his mate, stating, "You know, your folks are here." She nodded, but he needn't have said anything; she knew they were here the moment they set foot in the place. "Your uncle too," he added, "With a date no less."

Now this was news to her; not Truniz's presence, but that he had a date. Grinning herself, she stood, kissing him quickly on the cheek before saying, "I'm gonna go say 'hi'." In other words, she was going to go bother them. Chuckling at her retreating form, Kaen headed after the twins to the bar, Kat following him.

o-o-o

Vulture cast a wary eye over the two kids, turning the object in his hands over a few times before saying, "You say Kaen gave you this?"

Oran nodded, replying, "Yup, he told us to give it to you, and to tell you he said so..."

"...But he said we were 'sposed to call him 'Phoenix' here." His twin added.

The elderly barkeep nodded, "So that would make you two Saiyans." They nodded, so he grabbed two bottles out of the fridge, adding, "I assume he wants you to have the mixer because of your age, and if he believes you can handle it, that's good enough for me." Handing them the drinks, he asked, "So, is Kaen your father?" He honestly didn't know how old Kaen was, or how old these two were, so felt obliged to ask.

Oran opened his mouth to answer, but Lime cut him off, saying, "No, he's our brother, but he spent more time raising us than dad did..."

"...So we think of his as our second father." Oran finished her sentence, using the bond between twins.

"You do know that's illegal, right? Serving alcohol to minors," Videl voiced, walking up to them.

The twins just grinned at her, declaring together in singsong voices, "Diplomatic immunity." Obviously, Kaen had taught them that phrase.

When Videl levelled her gaze at Vulture, he just replied with a shrug, "Can't touch me either. I've been informed by the ruling body of New Saiya that he's decided to sponsor the club, and thus, for all matters concerning his people, I'm above reproach to any jurisdiction bar theirs, and this is well legal under their code."

With a sigh, Videl turned back to the twins, saying, "You do know that Kaen's diplomatic immunity doesn't include you, right?" She knew that it most likely did, but she wanted to try and trip them up.

Lime just shook her head, a smile on her face as she replied, "Doesn't matter. Our dad's one of Prince Vegeta's personal advisors..."

Oran scowled at her, adding, "...so you can't touch us girl!"

Videl was a little surprised by the young boy's attitude, saying, "Why are you so hostile?"

He shrugged, "My brother doesn't like you, and that's good enough for me."

"You don't like me because your brother doesn't?" Videl asked incredulously. When he nodded, she turned to Lime, saying, "And I assume you _do_ like me because Pi does?" When she too nodded, the pig-tailed girl said, "Don't you think for yourselves?"

"You're wasting your breath," a female voice stated from behind her, "Trying to get those two to act different to Kaen and Pi is like trying to stop the tide." Videl spun around to face the speaker, and found Kat grinning at her, and Kaen scowling; she noticed idly that the scowl he wore almost mirrored his younger brother, or, more accurately, his younger brother mirrored him.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't interrogate my little brother and sister, Satan," Kaen stated neutrally. The girl just held her hands up defensively, backing away a little before turning on her heel and walking off; she admitted to herself that Kaen scared her, more so since she found out he was a killer alien from beyond the moon.

Kaen just watched her go until she disappeared into the crowd; he knew she wasn't done causing trouble yet, but he wasn't worried. He chuckled to himself at how excited Kat was to learn that she was finally being allowed to drink, even if it was something weak; well, weak was a relative term, and it might actually be strong for her, but in any case he wasn't going to let her get drunk. At least, not in public. Watching her leave out of the corner of his eye, and idly noticing that the twins had run off, he reclined against the bar, making himself comfortable; he intended on getting nicely buzzed before going back on stage.

o-o-o

"Mum, dad, you made it!"

Raene smiled at her daughter, replying, "Of course we did dear. What made you think we wouldn't?"

Pi just shrugged, "You never replied, so we assumed not."

"And this, dear daughter, is why you should assume nothing," Kellre replied sagely, before grinning and adding, "Besides, after hearing why you had your mother cover for you, I _had_ to make time to come here."

She smiled at him nervously, before changing the subject, saying, "Hey, did you guys know Uncle Truniz has a date? I thought he was too much of a playboy for that."

Kellre just smiled, "Yes, I was beginning to lose hope he'd ever settle down, but he seems to have found a potential mate."

Noticing the glint in her daughter's eye, Raene stated, "Young lady, you will leave them alone. Don't go bothering him."

Pi mock-pouted, "Aw but why mum? Besides, it would be rude of me not to introduce myself." Raene just sighed, knowing that nothing she could say would change her mind; Kellre just laughed as Pi walked off, a slight spring in her step.

o-o-o

"You're Kaen's brother and sister, right?"

The twins turned in the direction of the voice, finding a lavender-haired kid in a green gi, and a black, spiky-haired kid in a red-orange gi. It was Oran who answered, "Yeah, that's us. Who's askin'?"

Grinning, the boy replied, "I'm Trunks, and this is Goten." The twins just nodded; they may not have met them yet, but they knew all about Vegeta and Kakarott's half-breed children.

"Nice to meet you Trunks," Lime stated, holding out her hand. When the boy looked at her warily, she rolled her eyes, muttering irritably, "Stupid boy, I'm not gonna bite you." He still stared at her for a few seconds before eventually shaking hands with her, but he recalled his hand as soon as was polite. 'I thought he was 'sposed to be the smarter of the two? He's as thick as a plank,' she thought to herself, 'Cute, but dense.' She wasn't sure where that 'cute' came from, but she'd think about it later.

The four kids conversed for a while, but Goten and Oran quickly got bored; Trunks and Lime were doing almost all the talking. Without a word, Oran walked off, intent on getting back to the table, and Goten just shrugged and wandered away, spotting a couple more kids and jogging towards them. Neither Trunks nor Lime noticed the two boys leave. Soon, the conversation turned to fighting.

"So, how strong are you?" Trunks asked.

The girl shrugged, "Dunno, ever since we stopped using scouters I couldn't tell you a number; not enough though. Our strength just doesn't seem to rise fast enough, so we focus mainly on speed instead; after all, a faster fighter can beat a stronger one. And I know you and Goten have already ascended."

"Shh," the boy hissed, looking around frantically to see if Vegeta was nearby, "Don't say that out loud! I don't want dad finding out. If he knew he'd make me train with him all the time." At the girl's blank look, he added, "Dad's idea of training is cranking up the gravity to at least two-hundred and beating me until I can't stand, then beating me some more."

"So?" Lime honestly didn't know what was so strange about this; that's usually how Kaen fought when he sparred with them, when he wasn't pulling his punches (which didn't happen often), and to the twins, Kaen, or Pi, sparring with them was a _reward_.

Giving her an odd look, Trunks asked, "What, do you like getting the crap kicked out of you?" When the grin on her face answered his question, he added, "How can you like being hurt a lot?"

The girl just shrugged, "Not like it doesn't grow back." Grinning, she added, "'Sides, if we come home really hurt after one of big brother's sessions mum and dad know we've worked really hard, and we get twice as much dessert, and occasionally three times as much."

Gaping at her in shock, Trunks commented, "You're crazy, you know that right?"

She just shrugged again, changing the subject, "I hear you're a bit of a prankster." When he nodded, she added, "Awesome! Me and Oran have run out of people to prank; we've hit everyone in the family so far, and Kaen's made sure we learned not to hit anyone twice." She tried not to shudder at the memory.

Trunks groaned, "I can't..." At her questioning look, he explained, "Dad said, as condition of me and Goten coming here, that we were not to cause trouble, or he'd force-feed us my mum's cooking for a month."

She snorted derisively, "Fine, if you're gonna be boring, I'm gonna go bother your dad."

Trunks stood there stunned for a few minutes as the girl walked away, before running after her, shouting, "No, you can't!" He may not have known her long, but he didn't want his new friend to get killed by his father.

--

Vegeta knocked back his drink, sighing as he felt the icy burn slither down his throat. There was something very satisfying about consuming his people's personal drink; Vegeta-Sei may have been gone, but he was pleased that some of it lived on even today. He hadn't been sure what to think when the Icebreaker had arrived on Earth ten years ago, bringing with it a half million of his formerly believed near extinct species, even more so when, thanks to his father, he was advised against taking his rightful place as King of Saiyans, but it was nice to know your race didn't end with you, even if they didn't need him as ruler. Besides, they had come to accept him once they realised he was different from his late father, thanks to his different upbringing.

That brought new questions to Vegeta's mind. How different might his life have been if Vegeta-Sei had survived? Would he have taken a Saiyan mate, or would fate have determined Bulma be his life mate even then. Would he have ascended to the throne by now, and if so, would he have been a better ruler than his father? Would a Super Saiyan have still killed Frieza, and would that Super Saiyan have still been Kakarott? He didn't know, and he hated not knowing, so he did the only thing he could do; he got drunk, to forget his questions.

It was refreshing to be able to get drunk, as normal alcohol had little to no effect on him, like normal Saiyans, but, because he'd only rarely had alcohol, he didn't really have a head for it like some Saiyans did; nonetheless, it amused him that the very first thing constructed when the Saiyans settled in was the Oosquai factory. So far, he'd put away a six pack of Oosquai, and he had no intention of stopping now; his mate had provided him with an unlimited Capsule Corporation credit card, 'for emergency use only', and he deemed being sober in a bar a dire emergency indeed.

Vegeta's buzzed mind turned to the topic of Kaen. While he'd never told anyone before, as a child, he had admired the 'Phoenix' he'd heard rumours about, but when he had disappeared, Frieza had claimed that he had dealt with Phoenix, and everyone had believed, even going to the length of re-invading the freed worlds. Now, Frieza was dead, Phoenix was back, and Vegeta was a little disillusioned at Kaen's power level; if he was right, however, and Kaen was indeed hiding the greater part of his power, then maybe the rumours had been true...

His musing was interrupted by something tugging on his pants leg; for once, Vegeta was _not_ wearing a spandex training suit, instead kitted out in a denim jacket, jeans, and a blue t-shirt. Looking down, he was met by a pair of large black eyes, framed by a small, obviously female face, with black hair in a ponytail; obviously, to his eyes, the girl was Saiyan, and there was only one Saiyan girl he knew of that'd be here. "What do you want girl?" he growled.

The young girl just continued to stare at him for a moment, and quite frankly, it was getting on Vegeta's nerves. He was just about to tear into her when she chirped, "Is it true you're a prince?"

Not the question he was expecting, his reply wasn't as gruff as he'd normally give as he replied, "Of course I am girl, why..."

"But how come?" she asked, cocking her head to one side, "My mum always said princes grow up into kings; why didn't you?"

Vegeta honestly had no answer for that, and he was a little too buzzed to come up with one. Instead, he just asked, "How old are you girl?"

Lime just giggled, "Technically, I'm 47." At Vegeta's confused look, she giggled again, "I remember you, me and Oran playing together as kids. You were so much cuter back then," she scrunched up her nose, "You grew up ugly."

Vegeta held his head; he had vague memories of playing with other children, a few years his senior, when he was a kid, but the memory wasn't clear, and the alcohol wasn't making life easier. "Girl," he growled, "If I hadn't drunk enough alcohol to kill a small child, I'd be killing a small child about now." She just giggled again and ran off, and Vegeta returned to his bottle, never once noticing his son watching, an awed look on his face that she had done that and lived.

o-o-o

"Hi, who're you guys?"

The blonde child turned around, finding herself facing a mass of black hair, atop an overly cute face. "Hiya, I'm Gina. Who're you?" When the redheaded boy beside her said nothing, she supplied, "This is my brother Vincent; he doesn't talk much."

"I'm Goten," the young boy chirped, tilting his head to one side and staring at Vincent for a minute before asking, "Is he sick? Is that why he doesn't talk much?"

She shook her head, replying, "Nah he's just ant... uh..." She paused, closing her eyes as she tried to remember what her sister had called him. "Uh, an... anti... anti-social, that's it."

"What does that mean?" Coming from the mouth of anyone bar Son Goten, that statement would be rather annoying, but the sheer innocence, and ignorance, that one could practically taste in the air around him took the edge off.

Gina just shrugged, "I dunno, I think it means he just doesn't like talking." Smiling widely, she cried, "Your hair looks really neat. How do you get it to stand up like that? Hey, cool gi; that means you know how to fight right? Vincent and me are learning to fight too. Well, we were until our dojo burned down; did you hear about that? Saiyaman was there and everything, but I didn't get to see him 'coz Phoenix saved us. Where do you learn? Maybe we could all spar together one day; where do you live?"

The mass of questions came at blinding speeds, able to be matched by only a handful of people; fortunately, however, Goten was one of those people. "I dunno," he replied, "my hair's always been like this. I live in the 439 Mountain Area with mum and niichan, and niichan trains me sometimes, but ever since he started school it's just been me and mum, so she's been training me."

"Who's your niichan?"

Turning around and pointing, Goten said, "His name's Gohan. He's over there with that nice lady Videl." Turning around again, he asked, "Do you have a niichan or neechan?"

The girl nodded, "Both; my big sister's Aeris, and my big brother's Leo. He's hanging out with Kat."

The demi-Saiyan's eyes lit up, "You know Kat? Awesome! Did you know she can do this cool thing where she changes how she looks, and has these cool ears and tail?"

The girl grinned, "Like this?" Saying that, she changed back into proper Neko-Jin appearance.

Goten gasped, like he'd just found a pot of gold, "Cool! You can do it too?"

"Yup," She said proudly, "Mommy says that Kat used to be a friend of hers when she was a kid, so she's the same spe... uh... she's one of us." Noticing something, she cried excitedly, "Hey, you've got a tail too? Cool! Can you hold things with it?" The conversation continued, and, as was normal for anyone of the Son bloodline, especially Goten, the subject soon turned to food, and Goten was a little surprised to find that she liked food almost as much as he did; of course, it was physically impossible to like food more than Goten, unless you were Goku of course. Occasionally, the two would try to include Vincent in their conversation, but he just ignored them both, but Goten still made a friend either way.

o-o-o

"Hey, you're Oran right? Phoenix's kid brother?"

Oran spun to face the voice, the second such statement he'd heard that night, and found himself face to face with a redheaded girl about his own age. With a sigh, Oran replied, "Yeah, that's me." He was getting a little annoyed by the constant need to introduce himself, but this girl seemed nice enough, so he'd give her enough time to get on his nerves before lashing out.

Grinning, the girl replied, "Cool, I've been looking for you. I'm Faile."

Oran looked at her curiously, asking, "Why would you be looking for me ever?"

"Why not?" she replied with a shrug, "I don't get much chance to hang out with kids my own age, and from what I've heard about you and your sister, you sound pretty cool." Spotting something, she cried, "Hey, you have a tail too? Cool. Can I touch it?" Before he could answer, she reached forward to grab his tail, but he snatched it away in time.

Oran scowled at her, "Don't _ever_ touch a Saiyan's tail without permission! It's a great dishonour."

"Sorry," she replied, sounding suitably meek. "I didn't know. I just thought it looked cool..."

He sighed; it wasn't her fault she was ignorant. "It's okay, don't worry about it." About that point, Oran realised that he still had a bottle in his hand, cracking it open and taking a swig. Absently, he held the bottle out to her, asking, "You want some?" For some reason, the girl blushed a bit, but she did take a quick drink before handing it back to him, coughing slightly at the strength of it; he grabbed it again using his tail.

"So," the girl began, "Kaen said he's teaching you to fight. You any good?"

He shrugged, "Don't know; all I've had to test myself again is Lime, my big bro, and big sisters. I'm stronger than Lime, and weaker than the others. That's about all I know."

"Well, would you like to spar with me sometime?" she asked, "I've been training for about four years now, so I'm getting pretty good."

He grinned, "You're on."

--

"I give them fifty-fifty odds," Kaen commented absently, from his position reclining against the bar.

"What do you mean?" The redhead next to him asked; Falcon.

Using his tail to raise the drink to his lips, he replied, "Well, we Saiyans strongly believe that everyone has a soul mate, and I've always had the ability to look at a couple and see if they're soul mates or not; for some reason though, I could never work out Pi was mine until I was about thirteen. Go figure. Pi's uncle Truniz and the woman he's with? They're soul mates. Gohan and Videl? They're soul mates too. Oran and Faile? No idea. I can't see one way or another. Maybe it's the fact they're totally different species or somethin'."

"What about me and Hawk?"

Taking another drink, he replied, "Eighty-twenty. Your souls match, but your personalities clash, and since, unlike we Saiyans who mate for life, you humans only stay together until you get sick of one another, it's not definite. The twenty is the odds he'll do something to piss you off enough to leave." She just laughed and walked off, and Kaen returned to his thoughts, not noticing the unknown girl walking up to him.

o-o-o

"Hey Uncle Truniz!"

The tall man turned away from the beautiful woman next to him to face his niece, grinning and declaring, "Hey there, if it isn't my favourite niece; I was wonderin' what took you so long to come see me."

"I'm your only niece," Pi replied amusedly.

"Exactly why you're my favourite," Truniz shot back, before adding, "I'd like you to meet Cherri. We met a few days ago in the city." He didn't need to mention which city it was.

"It's nice to meet you Cherri," Pi declared, holding her hand out, "I would like to be the first to tell you that you are _way_ out of my uncle's league."

Cherri just laughed, showing she obviously had a good sense of humour, as she took Pi's hand, "It's nice to meet you too. Truniz talks about you so much I'd almost swear you were _his_ daughter."

"Well, it's always been like having two fathers anyway," Pi replied with a shrug.

Grinning, Truniz stood, heading off to the bar after commented, "I'll leave you two to get to know each other." As Pi conversed with the older woman, she found that she quite liked her, and that she suited her uncle quite well. At the edge of her hearing, she picked up her uncle saying, "Barkeep, do you see how seriously not drunk I am? Fix it!" (1) Pi couldn't help it; she burst out laughing. She wasn't too surprised to find Cherri joined in. When Truniz came back, still grinning, he said, "Well, it's good to see you two getting along so well, but Pi, you'd better check on your runt; looks like someone's trying to muscle in on your territory."

Pi wanted to scowl at that, but she schooled her face to a smile, standing up and saying, "Well, it was nice to meet you Cherri; I can see myself calling you 'Aunt' soon enough. I'll see you later, hopefully."

--

"Hey, uh, can I get your phone number or something?" Asked a moderately attractive girl.

"Wha?" was Kaen's half-dazed response. He tended to tune out when the 'normals' were talking, and didn't even know she was talking to him until that question; he vaguely realised she'd been there for, like, five minutes now.

A very authoritative, very female voice growled, "You have exactly five seconds to get away from my boyfriend." The tone of her voice alone was enough to put the fear of God into the girl, but combined with the glare on her face, which was the sort to make small animals keel over and die, it was more than enough to cause the girl to flee as fast as her legs could carry her, proverbial tail between her legs. With her gone, the glare affixed itself to the next closest target; Kaen.

"Hey, don't get up me; I didn't do anything. Hell, I barely even knew the girl was there." Kaen didn't so much as flinch under the look; he was right, it wasn't his fault.

She just sighed; she hated when he was right. "I know. Sometimes you're just too pretty for your own good."

"Hey, I resent that," he remarked gruffly, still not bothering to move, "Dashing? Yes. Handsome? Yes. Pretty? Hell no."

Pi just smirked and shook her head, "Kaen, you like to think that your cocky attitude and bravado is what draws most of the attention to you, and while it does its part, it's time you faced facts sweetie; you're pretty." Kaen just looked at her with a flat stare, and she giggled a little before dragging him up and kissing him for all she was worth. After she broke away, she winked at him, "But you're _my_ pretty boy. Now, wait here and stay out of trouble 'til I get back." With that, she turned and walked away.

While no-one said anything, the murmurs of choked-back laughter could be heard from the group, as well as full-blown laughter from one Son Gohan, and the occasional not-so silent 'pretty-boy' remark from someone. Kaen resisted the urge to retaliate violently, hiding in his drink instead; in fact, he shut everything out so thoroughly that he didn't notice Hawk, Eagle, Condor, Falcon, and Harrier had all disappeared.

In fact, he didn't return to the world around until he heard a familiar male voice announce over the microphone, "I have a special announcement to make." Turning towards the stage, he noticed his band all set up, along with Falcon and her keyboard, and Harrier, just with a microphone. Hawk continued, "Now, a little birdie informed me that today is our man Phoenix's birthday, his twentieth at that." 'Ah, I wondered what was so important about today...' Kaen mused to himself, but Hawk wasn't finished yet, "Now, here to sing a very special song for out birthday boy is that birdie herself. The newest member of the House of Chaos, I'd like to introduce: Roc, singing 'Taking Over Me'."

To Kaen's surprise, Pi walked out from backstage, the lights in the club dimming to darkness as she strode to the microphone, standing under a single spotlight, the only light currently on. Falcon started playing her keyboard, joined by the others ten seconds later. After about twenty seconds, the music dropped back to pure keyboard, as Pi began singing, "You don't remember me, but I remember you. I lie awake and try so hard not to think of you."

The other's joined in again, and the stage lights began brightening again, as she sang on, "But who, can decide, what they dream? And dream I do..."

The lights came on full, as the song increased in tempo, as the other girls joined in singing the chorus; "I believe in you. I'll give up everything just to find you. I have to be with you, to live, to breath. You're taking over me."

The song slowed down again, and the lights dimmed to match, as she continued, "Have you forgotten all I know, and all we had? You saw me mourning my love for you, and touched my hand. I knew you loved me then..." It was almost painfully obvious to Kaen that the song was about him; or, more accurately, about her four-year search for him; as if the words alone weren't enough of a clue, he could feel her emotions as she sang.

The lights and tempo picked up again, as the chorus began once more; "I believe in you. I'll give up everything just to find you. I have to be with you, to live, to breath. You're taking over me."

Pi stared directly at Kaen as she sang the final verse, "I look in the mirror and see your face, if I look deep enough. So many things inside that are just like you are taking over..." The music died down to just Falcon and her keyboard as Pi sang the chorus alone one time, before it was sung again by the group, and the song wound to a close. The performance was met by raucous applause, and Pi actually blushed under the praise.

The crowd parted as Kaen walked forward, and Pi fiddled with her tail nervously as he jumped onto the stage; she could read nothing, either in his eyes or through the bond, and that made her slightly worried. "So," he stated neutrally, "this is what you've been hiding from me." Turning to the band, he continued, in that same tone, "Replacing me already huh?"

Hawk seemed to notice something that Pi, in her state, missed, as he joked, "Well, she _is_ prettier than you."

Eyeing Pi levelly, Kaen asked, "So, how long has this been going on, hmm? And, if you were so interested in music, why couldn't you tell me last week?"

Regaining her nerve once she realised that Kaen _wasn't_ upset at her, she answered his question with two of her own, "Kaen, how long have we known each other? How much time did we spend together as kids?"

"Since forever, and as much as possible, but..."

She smiled, silencing him with a finger to his lips, "Honestly, does it _really_ surprise you that we share such interests? I mean, you literally helped shape the person I am today."

Kaen smiled back, taking her into his arms as he said, "Well, I guess I should say 'welcome to the band' then."

Eyes flying open in shock, Pi asked, "Wait, you want me to do this with you? This isn't a one-time thing?"

He just smirked, "Well, you did say we need to do more things together. Say, if today's _my_ birthday, than it would also be _yours_, wouldn't it? In fact," he paused, looking at his watch, "You would be nineteen in exactly three minutes and twenty-five seconds. I don't suppose you had another song ready for tonight I could join in, help you celebrate this momentous occasion right?"

She smiled, sending him all the information he'd need as she said out loud, "Actually, I did have one I'd love to perform with you." Kaen picked up the guitar offered to him by Hawk, who knew better than to question whether he could play a song he'd never known about before.

With a smile etched into her features, Pi looked her mate straight in the eyes, the lights in the club dimming once more as the keyboard started, courtesy of Falcon. Moments later, she started singing, "How can you see into my eyes, like open doors? Leading you down into my core, where I become so numb..."

The stages lights burst into show again as the guitar and drums started, Kaen joining in seamlessly despite never having known of the songs existence before, as she continued, "Without a soul. My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold, until you find it there and lead, it, back... Home."

Still keeping their gazes locked, Kaen and Pi began trading lines, with more precision than you'd expect from two people who had never rehearsed together:

Kaen: "Wake me up."

Pi: "Wake me up inside."

Kaen: "I can't wake up."

Pi: "Wake me up inside."

Kaen: "Save me!"

Pi: "Call my name and save me from the dark!"

Kaen: "Wake me up."

Pi: "Bid my blood to run."

Kaen: "I can't wake up."

Pi: "Before I come undone."

Kaen: "Save me!"

Pi: "Save me from the nothing I've become!"

The song continued flawlessly, until it reached a point where half the crowd believed the entire 'secret surprise' thing was a set-up, as there was no way those two could have worked that well together without practicing first, right? Eventually, 'Bring Me To Life' would to a close, and after the girls returned backstage Kaen declared, "Well, with that, I think it's about time we turned things up to eleven!"

o-o-o

The night began winding down, but before it reached its end, Kaen had one last surprise to spring on the people assembled. "Well guys," he announced into the mike, "It's been fun, but I think it's about time to call it a close. Before that, however, I have one final twist. It seems that tonight has been the night for guest performers, so I'd like to call on another one; my good mate Dragon. Dragon, drag your scaly ass up here.

Dragon, the newest name in a line of names for one Son Gohan, smiled to himself. Earlier in the evening, the gang had suggested giving Kat and him new names, to fit in with the rest of the group. Kat had been thrilled at the nickname 'Raven', but when it came to Gohan, everyone seemed stumped. Kaen had jokingly offered up such names as 'Chicken' and 'Penguin' – purely to piss him off of course - and the only thing that prevented Gohan from knocking his friend's teeth in, bar Pi's intervention, was the massive grin on the time traveller's face. Kat, or 'Raven', had ended up saving the day, suggesting 'Dragon', along with the explanation: "It's a flying creature, to show you're a part of the group, but not a bird, to show that this isn't the life you want all the time; you're not the type to spend every night here, or on the road, just when it suits you."

Gohan had to admit to himself that he liked the name; the fact he had a special connection to a certain green-scaled eternal dragon helped a bit. For the second time that night, the crowd parted for someone to approach the stage, like the Red Sea had for Moses, and Gohan, in a mood to show off, spun around and moon-saulted on to the stage. Kaen clapped dryly, mouthing 'Show-off', before unslinging his guitar and passing it over. Hawk raised an eyebrow sceptically, asking, "Are you sure about this man? He doesn't look like the type to..."

He was cut off by Gohan, or more accurately, by Gohan letting rip a massive guitar riff, a bastardly smile on his face at the look of shock the other three wore. Condor recovered first, instinctively drumming along when needed, and the others joined in soon after. Kaen, now instrument-less, just walked over to the microphone, yanking it off the stand and striding to the front of the stage; or, more accurately, the speaker set up on the floor in front of the middle of the stage.

Waiting for the right time, he unfurled his tail, latching on to the ankle-high railing on the front of the stage, and resting a foot on the speaker as he leaned over the crowd and began singing, "Wanna love ya, wanna bug ya, wanna squeeze ya, stupid girl. Wanna touch ya, wanna take ya, wanna shut ya, stupid girl." Getting into the spirit, Hawk joined in; "I... Can't... Take... This... Born... To... Break... This..."

Raising his free hand above his head, Kaen began egging the crowd on, getting them to join in the chorus; "She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? Stupid girl. Stupid girl."

Standing upright again, and releasing his hold on the rail as he walked around, he continued, "I'm a loner, I'm a loser, I'm a winner, in my mind. I'm a bad one, I'm a good one, I'm a sick one, with a smile." Again, Hawk joined him, this time grinning as wide as Gohan and Kaen were; "I... Can't... Take... This... Born... To... Break... This..."

Returning to the centre of the stage, Kaen got the crowd involved once more; "She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? (What's wrong with my life today?) She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today?"

The song dropped down to Gohan and Kaen alone, as Kaen began repeating, "Stupid Girl." Raising his hand again, the crowd, as one, raised their voices to join in the almost gentle hum of the lull, and again as the chorus began anew, for the final time; "She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? (What's wrong with my life today?) She's going away, she's going away. What's wrong with my life today? Stupid Girl. Stupid Girl. Stupid Girl. Stupid Girl."

A roar of approval came up from the crowd, and Hawk was the first to clap Gohan on the back, saying, "Man, I should've never doubted you. How come you've never come to practice?"

Grinning still, Gohan replied, "Well, for one, kaasan would kill me if I skipped school, and for two, I don't _need_ practice."

"I hear that," Eagle cried, "So, you know any more?"

Kaen and Gohan shared a grin and a nod, and as Gohan started, the other's picked up the song soon enough, Kaen striding back to the centre of the stage. Shucking his shirt, he had a vague notion to fling it into the crowd, but figured that might piss Pi off, so decided against it, dropping it behind him instead as he began singing the final song of the night. "Bury the priest and burn religion alive. Baptised at birth with the black brush's wine. The uncrowned King Unholy. Forget about the crucifix, my rising sign is 666."

Leaning out at almost a 45-degree angle over the crowd, he continued; "Can't you see the way they twist and turn; watch 'em burn. Just sign right here and watch the tables turn. You want the world, I know the way, just raise your fist and let me hear you say..."

Extending his pinkie and pointer fingers of his free hand, and crossing his thumb over the middle two, he raised his fist to the roof, and was joined by almost everyone in the club as they cried as one "HATE! You want it; HATE! you need it; HATE! You want it. Come on, come on, come on, come on, get it, get it, GO!" He could hear Pi in his mind asking what the deal was with that gesture, but he didn't really have an answer to give; all he really knew was that it was something ingrained in human society, and had been referred to as 'devil horns' at some point.

The song continued from there, but when it was over, the night, yet, was not, as Kaen added, "Now, that was fun wasn't it? Before we finish, who here wants to see what Dragon can do with that thing?" There was a massive cheer from the crowd of mostly teens, but regardless Kaen said, "I don't think that quite cuts it. I want to hear some noise outta you; gimme a 'Hell yeah!'" He got his 'Hell Yeah', so, turning to Gohan, said, "They're all yours."

Forgetting himself for a moment, Gohan used his tail to drag over one of the nearby stools, and began playing that guitar with every trick he knew, even playing it strapped to his back, upside down, at one point. Videl, for her part, didn't even notice his tail-use, fortunately; she was a little more stunned by the fact she quite clearly saw a bite mark on Kaen's left shoulder, one she assumed was mirrored on Pi. She was even more stunned, however, by Gohan's remarkable guitar skills, muttering to herself, "I didn't know he could do that..."

"That's what happens when you interrogate instead of converse," Pi's voice cut in amusedly, "People tend to tell you no more than necessary. You want my advice? I've found from experience that you get more information from your boyfriend if you ask for it, instead of demanding it."

Walking away, Pi fell to the ground laughing as, no less than two minutes later, she heard Videl reply in a mild shout, "He's not my boyfriend!"

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

This is another one of those chapters that just didn't want to end, and, just like the last time, I feel I rushed the ending a bit, but given the size, I think I can be forgiven for wanting it finished.

Special prize to anyone who can work out the catch behind the twins' names in the alternate universe (Rash and Tama if you've forgotten). Remember, as twins, there's a link between the names (e.g. Oran(ge) and Lime - citrus fruits), and, in Saiyan fashion, it's food related. I've probably given it away, but meh. No idea what the prize'll be though, so, you can say something you want if you have a guess, and I'll see what I can do.

Incidenatlly, this chapter was the second last one to contain an alternate world mentioned, and I'm sure if you didn't hate the dimension-hopping Nijuushin Kaen (which means doppelganger, just so you know) before, then I'm sure you do now.

(1) This quote is from a web comic, which is down now for a while, and is now back again, called Squidi(dot)net. I highly reccomend it.

The songs mentioned/used in this chapter were, in order:

'King Nothing', by Metallica, the Gods of Metal;

'Taking Over Me' and 'Bring Me To Life', by Evanescence;

'Stupid Girl', by Cold;

'Hate', by Drowning Pool.

Now, ss7gohan managed to guess the more obvious of the two VG Cats references in the story, that being Leo and Aeris, the cat-people. Admittedly, when I originally named Leo, I did it because of the obvious link between Leo and cat. After all, the other cat people (Katrina/Kat, Tabitha/Tabby, and Tom) all have cat-themed named. The addition of Aeris was my beta's idea. Now, for fun, can anyone guess what the second, less obvious reference is? Keep in mind that both references are related.


	26. A Vicious Circle

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 24 - A Vicious Circle

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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He pored over the plans again, for possibly the twentieth time that night alone; he _had_ to make sure there was nothing wrong with the design. His father had retired for the night roughly five hours ago, and he would be back in, at most, another three, and when he did, the finishing touches on the device would be completed. He _had_ to make sure it would work. It was his only chance to get her back again...

It was about two days ago that she'd been killed, and he hadn't slept since; every time he closed his eyes, he saw her face. He still wasn't sure exactly what happened, it all happened too fast... All he knew for sure was that she'd been killed by another Saiyan, one of surprising strength, who'd been rambling about how his 'Tuffle masters wanted their homeland purged of infidels.'

The man had been captured and subdued, but that wasn't good enough for Kaen; he, understandably, wanted blood. Nevertheless, he took heart in the fact that the captured Saiyan was going to be experimented on, to find out what caused his mind to decay as it had, because he knew that live experimentation would be extremely painful. It wouldn't bring Pi back to him though, so he, his father, and hers, all began work on their latest creation, the creation whose plan he was rechecking this very minute. A Space-Time Continuum Disruption and Realignment Device; in layman's terms, a time machine.

If... No, _when_, they got it working, Kaen was all set to rewind time to before Pi was killed, and more than prepared to make sure she survived the attack of the deranged Saiyan. He already had a few special techniques lined up, ones he'd been meaning to save for the right time; this, he decided, was well past the right time. If everything went to plan... Grr, no, _when_, the device would be finishing in five hours, and he would have Pi back again in no more than another three (ignoring the fact that, as the device would rewind time, all the hours that had passed would have never come to be). He returned to checking the plans again; they had to be correct. They just had to be...

--

Nijuushin watched the situation unfolding before him in abject horror. He'd been here for two days now, and he had to check and recheck the settings on The Device to make sure that it hadn't sent him to the past of his own dimension; it hadn't. By some horrible twist of fate, this dimension seemed to be a time-delayed version of his, right down to who killed his mate, and he had arrived just in time to watch her die again; once more, he had been unable to save her from death.

For two days, he'd been forced to relive the most horrible moment of his life, as he watched his dimensional double working with their fathers on The Device; he still remembered exactly why it was built the way it was. The flux capacitor was designed to reverse the flow of time; they hadn't been sure at the time whether it would reverse _his_ time flow, re-integrating him into the time stream as himself back at the right time, or whether it would simply insert him at the right time, resulting in two of him existing at once, but he'd been willing to take the chance either way. The energy shield was added so he would have a viable means of protecting Pi from the insane Saiyan's wild blasts. The essence collector was installed such that, if and when Kaen killed the loony, they could still study what happened to him.

He wasn't sure why those memories had been lost to him until recently, when his jailbird double pointed out the flaws in the design; perhaps, in his trauma, he'd subconsciously suppressed all memories of this time. As frozen, lost within his thoughts, as he was, he didn't act until he saw his double prepare to use the newly completed Device, walking out of the shadows and calling out, "I'm afraid I can't let you do that."

Spinning around, but not yet seeing the face to match the strangely familiar, echo-y voice, Kaen growled, "Who asked you? Who the hell _are_ you?"

Stepping into the light of the workshop, and revealing his blood-stained face to the shocked gasps of the three men present, he replied, "I am more than mortal, but less than Saiyan. I was once you, but now, I know not what I am, so I use the name Nijuushin."

Recovering quickly, Kaen asked, "If you are, or were, me, why are you stopping me? You, or all people, should know why I'm doing this."

A haunted look in his eyes, as he gazed through them, Nijuushin replied, "Part of me wants to stop you to save you the pain I have been through. The Device you wear, like the one on my arm, does not work as planned. Rather than rewind time, it breaches the borders between parallel dimensions; so far, this is the twenty-fourth dimension I have set foot in, baring my own. My sanity, and Saiyanity, has been slowly corroded away as I trek ever closer to my new goal..."

His eyes darkened again, filled with malice, as he added, "The other part of me wants to stop you from halting said new goal. If I allowed you to begin the same journey I have, no doubt you will eventually become a threat to me, my equal in power, and this I cannot allow." Raising his hand to prepare a killing blast, knowing that The Device had not yet been activated, and thus the shield not switched on, he continued, "I will kill you, reuniting you with your lost love, and sparing you my fate."

He fired the blast before any of the men could react, destroying his double, and The Device he wore, in a single red explosion, before vanishing again in the usual hail of blue lightning. It wasn't until hours later, when his double's memory sifted through his minds eye, that he discovered that The Device he had destroyed was, unlike his, a fully working time reallocation device, one that could have returned Pi to life.

o-o-o

The raven-haired girl yawned widely, rubbing her tired eyes as she tried to focus on the documents in front of her; when Gohan had said 'expect to be home late' she'd never guessed that 'late' would be around two in the morning. Absently, she realised Gohan would have gotten home later, knowing he lived way out in the 439 Mountain area _and_ had been gentleman enough to drive her home, but she quickly kicked those thoughts down; she had work to do, and focusing on her crush was counter-productive to that work.

When she'd gotten home last night - or rather, this morning - the report the chief had promised her had been waiting her scrutiny in her room, but she'd been far too tired then to even glance at it. At breakfast, her father, back from his 'business trip' a few days ago, had been very annoyed that a police officer had come to _his_ house yesterday, as it was 'harmful for his image in the public's eye to have cops frequenting his house', and even more annoyed that Videl was still helping said cops, but nonetheless the officer had been there on official police business, so the 'champ' had been forced to let the young man in.

When she'd found the time to look at the file, she'd been surprised at how small it was. She almost contacted the chief again, demanding to know why there wasn't more, but, despite how nervous he'd been when she called in her favour, he had promised her that she would be given a full background check on Kaen, but would deny any knowledge of said background check if asked; that was good enough for her. Obviously, there just wasn't much information about him.

Setting aside the file for now, she sat down at her desk, writing down all the information she currently knew about the flame-haired man. By his own admission on Friday, he was a killer, and an alien, and, from what she'd seen last night, had no problem with flaunting the latter off to everyone; she wondered why everyone else in the club failed to notice the obvious use of his tail. Also, he had what was obviously a bite-mark on his left shoulder, and, from what she'd felt when she, subtly, placed a hand on Pi's left shoulder last night, the girl too had one, which was, to say the least, bizarre. She wondered how she'd missed that, and the tail, when they were at he beach that day...

Also, from what she'd heard in the club, Kaen was this 'Phoenix' she'd heard about, the latest 'hero' to make a showing in Satan City, the one she'd never seen in action; absently, she wondered why he called himself that in the club, because whatever the reason, it was a pretty boneheaded move to use your alias like that. Obviously, he also had a way of changing his eye and hair colour, because reports of the Phoenix that had been at the fire at the Satan City Sports Emporium were of a man with red hair and eyes. Absently, she realised that this meant Gohan had to be Saiyaman, but she had no proof of that, so set the thought aside.

Judging from what she herself had seen in PE, Kaen was extremely fast, and extremely strong; inhumanly so, which added credence to his claim of being an alien. It also meant that he was, without a doubt, that mystery man who had, two weeks ago, ripped an engine block out of a moving car. From the reports of the fire, Kaen was also able to blow holes in brick walls, and jump out of a fourth floor window - or rather, a hole he'd made in a fourth floor wall - and land on his feet, unharmed.

Pulling the file over, she took out one of the few documents inside, adding to her notes. Kaen had been granted diplomatic immunity, along with the title of ambassador of New Saiya, a country that hadn't existed until ten years ago... 'Wait', she thought to herself, 'Saiya? On Friday, Kaen had mentioned that his race was called Saiyans. That means that entire country is made up of alien refugees.' Jotting that down, she continued reading, finding out that the ruling body of New Saiya was headed up by one Prince Vegeta.

"Prince Vegeta, that was who those kids said their dad, Kaen's dad, worked for," she mused aloud, jotting it down, but pausing when she realised something, "Wait a minute; Vegeta? That was the name of the man at the bar, the one with hair like Kaen... _That_ was the prince of New Saiya?" Adding that note, she shook her head before continuing to read, idly wondering why his title was 'Prince' and not 'King'; things were just getting weirder and weirder.

There was nothing else of much interest in that document, just information about New Saiya, and something about a village in the 438 Mountain Area, but she already knew that Kaen lived there. Setting it aside, she moved on to the next document; financial records. "So, the girls weren't lying when they said he was well off..." she muttered to herself. His account held no less than 25 billion zenni, and that was just his day-to-day bank account; reading further down, she saw he had a whole lot more invested in shares and the like.

Looking over the document, she wouldn't have been too surprised to find he was richer than her father, and probably more deserving of it too. The documents showed that the accounts, and investments, had been all transferred from gold and precious jewels - obviously, that was the currency in outer space - and that they both had been set up in trust by a Ms. B. Briefs about ten years ago.

"Ms. B. Briefs?" Videl muttered to herself, tapping her pen against her chin as she thought, "Now who in the world could that..." She stood up roughly, sending her chair flying back, as she exclaimed, "BULMA Briefs! They not only know, but also had accounts set up by, the richest and most influential person, male or female, in the world? Wait; B! Kaen mentioned that some woman he called 'B' had warned the school about him; that must have been Bulma. That must mean Gohan knows her too." Some part of her mind was curious as to how a backwoods boy like Gohan knew the richest woman in the world, but thinking about Gohan could wait for another day; today, she was focused on uprooting all of Kaen's secrets.

She physically reeled as another breakthrough occurred to her, "Hold on, Bulma Briefs' husband has been reported to be a man named 'Vegeta', and I've seen him myself at a few functions, and it was definitely that guy from the bar. Why didn't I see it before... That means Bulma Briefs is married to an alien, an alien that just happens to rule over a nation of aliens founded ten years past; the same time Kaen's account was set up." She knew it could have just been a coincidence, but Videl was not one to believe coincidences existed; besides, how many people could there be named 'Vegeta' in the universe?

Setting that document aside, she moved on to the next one, and was a little surprised to find that it was the _last_ document the file contained; for a 'complete background check', there wasn't much to it. Maybe the last one would help her understand why... Her eyes widened as she read it over, and she had to read it several times to make sure she'd read it right; it couldn't be correct... According to this, Kaen, Pi, and Kat, along with those kids Oran and Lime, didn't exist until around three and a half weeks ago. There was no birth certificate for any of them, or any other document to prove they were born and existed, until recently; how then could Kaen have had an account for ten years?

She smirked to herself as she set the documents back in the folder; she now had all the evidence she needed to get what she wanted. All she had to do was wait until Monday, and hope she could put her plan into action.

o-o-o

Kat paced nervously up and down the hall; it was Monday, the start of their third week at school, and she was worried that something bad was going to happen today. Videl knew something; of this the redhead was certain. The human girl had seen a lot in the club, and unlike the rest of the humans, Kat could tell that Videl didn't just _see_ things, she _noticed_ them; the normal humans may have passed Kaen's antics off as tricks, or special effects, but the young cat girl could tell that Videl was different. Kat was just worried about how Videl was going to use this knowledge...

Kaen and Pi hadn't noticed anything, but both had been far to busy Saturday night to keep an eye on Videl, and Gohan's eyes may have been on Videl all night, but he didn't see what Kat did; they all thought she was worried for nothing, as Pi showed right now as she casually leant against a nearby wall with Gohan, but Kat's gut had never been wrong. She continued pacing, thinking up all possible scenarios, and ways to explain her way out of them, but her musing was cut off as she noticed the girl in question approaching.

"Hey Videl!" The girl cried out with forced cheerfulness, a smile on her face.

She was a little relieved to see Videl smile back, but not completely. The pigtailed girl waved back, saying, "Hey guys; thanks again for the invite Saturday." She paused, looking around a bit before asking, "Kaen not here today?"

Kat noticed that the disgust in her voice when she normally said 'Kaen' was replaced with, dare she say, curiosity, but she was prevented from saying anything when Pi replied, "Nah, he's gonna be here, he just had something to take care of first, so he's gonna be a bit late."

"Come on!" Kat cried, "We can't stand here waiting for him, we gotta get to class." Inside, she figured that, once in class, whatever Videl might or might not be thinking of doing would have to wait until after, and by then they could work out what she knew, what she was going to do with it, and, most importantly, how to rebuke it.

The four friends started walking to class, but all of a sudden Videl began searching her pockets, and her bag for something. Turning around, Gohan asked, "What's wrong?"

Blushing a bit, Videl replied, "I just noticed I don't have my copter capsule with me; like an idiot, I think I might've left it on the roof when I arrived this morning. You guys go on ahead, I've gotta go back and get it; I need to keep it on me in case I get called out today." The girl walked off, but Kat could see no viable reason to follow her, so she just hung her head and continued on to class.

"Come on Kat, cheer up," Pi said, putting an arm around her, "You're worrying over nothing."

"I hope you're right Pi," Kat replied mournfully, "I really do..."

--

Videl smiled to herself as she strode down the hallway; she was so glad that worked. Now, she could wait until Kaen arrived, and ambush him on his way to class, while he had no one around to hide behind. Fate had handed her the perfect opportunity, and she intended to collect.

o-o-o

Kaen strode down the empty hall, a smile on his face. Sunday had been a fairly busy day at home, what with his parent's discovery as to how he spent his spare time; his father, while a little surprised, had been a lot more supportive than he'd given his old man credit for. Avarrdo had also been surprised that both of the twins had potentially found a mate, Lime with Vegeta's son Trunks, and Oran with the human girl Faile; as he'd explained, both Saiyan and human DNA were highly adaptive, so hybrids were perfectly safe, and while there may be potential downsides to such hybridisation, like a loss of some of the Saiyan protean ability, he was positive there would always be a positive that counteracted it completely, if not improved it. He hadn't worked out _what_ yet, but he claimed it was one of his and Kellre's side projects.

His mother April had, of course, been delighted to find out that her babies were growing up, and, when she'd found out that Faile wanted to come over this morning, was more than happy to accommodate her and her older sister, provided Kaen was the one to pick them up. Given how happy it would make his mother, and, while the young boy refused to show it, how happy Oran was by the idea, Kaen was more than ready to help, even if it meant less time with his mate.

The smile on his face slipped a bit as he saw Videl leaning against a nearby locker, but he refused to let her get to him, instead just nodding his head to her and continuing on; she may not have been his friend, but Gohan liked her, so it couldn't hurt to be nicer. He heard her say, "We need to talk."

Shaking his head, he just kept walking, calling back, "Not interested girl."

He could hear the smirk in her voice as she called out, "Oh, I think you'll want to hear what I've got to say _Kapskaen_." He froze mid-step, turning around to face her with a scowl as she added, "Or is it Phoenix? I'm not sure now."

Ignoring the second remark, Kaen growled, "Where did you hear that name?"

She just smirked wider, "Well, I overheard a most... interesting conversation Friday, Mr. Mass-Murdering Alien." That was Videl's first mistake, admitting to having spied on him.

One eye twitching, Kaen growled again, more animalistic this time, "You were listening in on us? Have you no shame girl?"

Videl just crossed her arms, "I don't give a damn what you think of me."

Standing upright again, Kaen remarked, "You do know that you can't touch me, right, no matter what you may or may not know about me?"

She smiled, replying far too cheerfully, "You're absolutely right, there's nothing that I can _legally_ do to you, but what do you think would happen if, say, the press got a hold of information from an anonymous source that an entire city of aliens, called 'Saiyans', were living near West Capital?"

Shaking his head, Kaen said, "All that would happen is that the population of Earth would panic, attack, and be killed. If we wanted, girl, we Saiyans could have taken over this planet and bent it to our will, but we were tired of conquest. Instead, we approached your King of the World peacefully, requesting the mountain area as a location to set up our nation because of, well, sentimental reasons really. He himself knew that we could have exterminated the human race, but we were willing to settle for living in harmony, to rebuild our race. You tell the press, girl, and you can be assured that your race will die."

Clenching his fist, he added, "Hell, if I need to I'll glass the planet myself; it wouldn't be the first time, and, unlike most humans, we have a way off this rock. There are more than enough planets out there, and plenty of races who are more appreciative of their saviours."

Resisting the urge to stomp her foot in anger, she asked, "What do you mean 'saviours'?"

He just grinned, "In recent years: Cell. Now, I wasn't here for that particular jaunt - a damn shame that, would've enjoyed the challenge - but you can rest assured that there's more to the story than you know. You want answers? Ask Gohan; I'm certain you heard more of that conversation than just my piece."

Putting the questions that arose out of her mind, Videl pressed on, "Maybe so, but what if the paparazzi got a hold of information as to the secret identity of Phoenix, where he lived, where his family lived? Day in and day out you would be hounded by reporters, and believe me when I tell you that they will _not_ go away; do you think Oran and Lime would like that? You're right Kaen; legally, I can't do a thing about you, but I can still use what I know to ruin your life." That was her second mistake; threatening his family, especially his brother and sister; he was _highly_ overprotective of them.

Kaen sighed; this was getting nowhere. Meeting her eyes, he asked, "What do you want?"

She smirked in victory, "I know for a fact you're super strong, can fire those explosive beams of light from your hand like Saiyaman, and I assume that, like him, you can fly. You are going to train me." That was her third mistake.

Kaen's eyes narrowed as he growled, "WHAT?"

Not noticing the danger in the air, Videl just spun around, replying, "You heard me. The way I see things, you have two choices: one, train me, and keep your secrets secret; or two, don't train me, and watch your peaceful life crumble around you."

Kaen chuckled darkly, his vision fading to red, as he said, "You forgot the third choice..."

Spinning back around, she asked, "Oh really? What's the third choice?"

Her eyes widened in shock as Kaen lunged for her, and despite what she believed she knew, she was still surprised with both his speed and his strength as he wrapped his left hand around her throat, slamming her into the lockers behind her, her feet off the ground; slamming her _through_ the lockers was probably a more accurate description.

Panicking slightly, she lashed out with her legs, and was again surprised when her blows did nothing. Kaen just chuckled darkly again as he answered her question, "I kill you, and all knowledge dies with you; believe me when I tell you, Miss Satan, that no jury on this world will convict me."

'He's... He's really going to kill me!' Videl's panicked mind screamed as she felt his hand tightening around her throat, cutting off her airway. She kept struggling to get free, but nothing she could do even seemed to hurt him, as she felt the darkness starting to take her into it's embrace.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

This chapter marks the last ever alternate world intro, and, hopefully, the last _ever_ separate intro bit in my stories. You think I would have learnt my lesson from my _first_ story, but no... For those who are interested, there's going to be a summary later in the story of the different dimensions shown, or some of them at least.

For those who wanted to see some action, you need only wait until the next chapter, when worlds collide (as the title would suggest), and Kaen meets his next, and thus far greatest foe; himself.


	27. Crossroads

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 25 - Crossroads

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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The heads of Pi, Gohan, and Kat, all shot up from their work, all peering at nothing and looking through everything. They could all sense something was off, but it was Pi who said, "Something's wrong... Kaen..." Wasting no more time on words, she shot out of her seat, racing out of the classroom with Kat and Gohan on her heels, and before they'd gotten five steps outside the rest of the class was following, with Erasa in the lead.

--

Videl felt tears forming at the edges of her eyes as her vision started to go dark; they say your life flashes before your eyes when you're about to die, and Videl could attest to that being true, as she was seeing things she couldn't even remember. Worst of all, however, she was seeing things that _could_ have been if she'd had more time, most of them centring on Gohan. If only she'd had the guts to tell him how she felt...

"Let her go!"

Kaen's head snapped in the direction of the voice, his eyes locking onto those of none other than Son Gohan himself. Gohan almost flinched at the pure rage he could see in those orbs, but more than that, he could 'hear' the silent communication they spoke: 'This one dies!'

Gohan's eyes seemed to reply: 'What has she done that deserves that fate?'

The response was swift: 'She has insulted my honour, and that of my mate, as well as threatening my family. The punishment is death!'

Gohan replied back: 'While I am yet to claim her, this one is mine. Release her to me.' In retrospect, Gohan would be shocked by how Saiyan he was acting, but he had no time for such reflection now.

The grip he held on her throat lessened, but the anger in Kaen's eyes increased as he 'shouted' back: 'NO! I will not let her go unpunished for this!'

'Then scare her if you must, but _I_ will deal with her; as my mate, I will take her debt as my own.'

Only then did Kaen calm down, his eyes with one final message: 'So be it Celloto'; the entire 'conversation' took place in all of 2 seconds. Turning back to Videl, he whispered in her ear, "You're lucky this time Satan, but your mate won't be around to protect you all the time. Know that I can kill you whenever I please, and there's nothing you or your worthless maggot of a father can do about it." To punctuate his statement, Kaen drew back his right hand, balled into a fist, and threw a punch at her face, redirecting it at the last second to the locker beside her; it went clear through the sheet metal, as well as the three textbooks contained within, and the brick wall behind it, leaving a clean hold into the classroom beyond. Wrenching his fist free Kaen dropped the girl, sparing one last glance for Gohan, his mate, and sister, while still quivering with unreleased rage, before taking off to the roof, blasting off the second the door slammed shut behind him; his destination: Capsule Corp.

--

Videl continued to sit there for a few minutes, sniffling a little as she held a hand to her throat, before she noticed the stunned audience and bolted for the girls bathroom. Erasa was hot on her heels, and upon arriving at the bathroom she locked it behind her, rushing over to her long-time friend; she was shocked to see Videl crying, knowing what kind of person she was, but wasted no time in embracing her friend, asking, "Are you alright?"

The pig-tailed girl shook her head, another sign she was clearly distressed; Videl never cried, and Videl was always all right. Still occasionally wracked with sobs, she managed to mumble into her friends shoulder, "He was going to do it... He was really going to kill me, and... And I was powerless to stop him." Erasa just held her friend close, knowing now what had Videl so upset; it wasn't really the near-death experience, what with her work with the police, but it was the fact she couldn't stop him.

--

Back in the hallway, Gohan asked, "Should I go after him? He looked... volatile." That was his tactful way of saying 'homicidal'.

Pi just shook her head, "No, he's heading to possibly the only man on the planet that could both understand, and handle, his rage." In other words, he was heading to Vegeta.

"Do you know what set him off?" Kat asked.

Again Pi shook her head, muttering, "No, but I intend to find out." Spinning around to the still assembled class, she shouted, "Shows over; get back to class!" They wasted no time in complying, and with a satisfied nod the three headed after Videl, finding Erasa standing outside the door trying to block their entrance.

"Uh, you can't go in there."

Pi just scowled at her, "Erasa, I'd like to think we're friends, but right now, I need answers, and Videl is the only one who has them, so, as a friend, I'm asking you: get out of my way before I break your arm off." Needless to say, the girl practically dove out of the way, and, walking inside, Pi stood over Videl, looking down at her and saying, "We need to talk."

o-o-o

Bulma pointed at her mate angrily, barking, "How could you do that without telling me?"

Vegeta just shrugged; she'd just found out about his little jaunt to the club on Saturday. When the records of his credit card transactions came in she'd asked Trunks, and he'd let slip. "Didn't think you'd be interested woman."

"Bullshit!" She shouted. "You just didn't want me along. You never take me anywhere, I swear..."

She was cut off as the nearby door - the back door to the residential area of Capsule Corp - was blown inward, and let out a little shriek, as Vegeta moved to shield his mate. She pushed past him to berate the intruder, but Vegeta quickly put a hand across her mouth as he saw the look on their visitor's face, telepathically telling Bulma, _"Don't say anything, don't even move."_

Vegeta took in his 'guest'. There, in the doorway, was Kaen, visibly panting and quivering with suppressed rage, his eyes flickering red and, dare he say, green? Their eyes locked, and Vegeta found all the information he needed, nodding once and walking briskly in the direction of the gravity room, followed by Kaen. As soon as the door slammed shut, Kaen let out a war cry and dove at him, fists and feet flying, and Vegeta just blocked them all; in his current state, Vegeta knew he could easily overpower Kaen, but that wouldn't help the situation. Of all people, Vegeta understood the need to release anger, so he just kept playing punching bag until the blows stopped, Kaen falling to the floor in exhaustion, before asking, "So, who or what got you this worked up?"

Kaen just growled out a single word: "Satan."

--

"Alright Videl, what happened?"

The girl scuffed her foot against the concrete, taking a moment to compose herself; the girls had dragged her up to the roof, and Gohan had followed silently. Pi was currently watching her like the proverbial vulture, waiting for her to slip up, and Kat looked torn between jumping in, and restraining the older girl; Gohan, however, looked completely neutral, as opposed to his usual happy-go-lucky self, which worried her more.

Clearing her throat, which she absently noticed still felt quite sore, she said, "W-well, uh, I caught Kaen in the hallway, and we got to talking... Well, _I_ talked, he started to walk off, until I... I called him 'Kapskaen'."

Pi's voice was stern as she said, "Where did you hear that name? I know for a fact he hasn't used it outside of official ceremony for years."

Scuffing her foot nervously again, Videl replied, "Well, I... I overheard Gohan saying it on Friday."

Her heart dropped as she saw a scowl come across her crush's face, "You were listening in on us? For how long?"

The pig-tailed girl shrank down under his disapproving look, "I didn't mean to; I just wanted to see you two fighting when no-one else was around. I only heard from you saying your father was killed by Cell to you calling him Kapskaen, and him calling you 'Celloto', whatever that means." Gohan's scowl softened a little; she hadn't heard anything too incriminating, and he could tell she hadn't meant to hear anything.

"Then what Videl?" Pi prodded, "I know you didn't just tell him you knew his full name."

"Well, no." Finding she couldn't meet their accusing gaze anymore, she looked at the ground, saying, "I confronted him with everything I'd worked out about him. His supposed alias 'Phoenix', the fact you three are aliens, everything."

"There's still something you're not telling us," Pi cut in sharply, "Kaen would not have gone _this_ overboard for that. I have _never_ felt him this angry before."

"I've seen him this angry before," Kat added, shuddering involuntarily, "When you died."

"Wait; felt? Died? What the hell do you mean?" Videl interrupted.

Pi spun around to glare at her, replying, "Given what's happened today, I don't have to tell you anything, but because I'd _like_ to think we're friends, I'll answer your questions. You know Kaen and I are aliens; well, because of our relationship we can feel each other's emotions. The answer to your other question is simple. A few months ago Kaen and I were attacked by an old enemy of his; I got caught in the crossfire, and was killed. Kaen, in his rage, destroyed the guy completely, and brought me back, but he's never really gotten over it." Folding her arms across her chest, she added, "Now, what else did you do?"

She sunk to the ground, wrapping her arms around her legs as she said, "I... Well, I tried to... blackmail him..."

"WHAT?" Pi shrieked; Kat quickly moved to restrain her, grabbing her under the arms.

"Blackmail him into doing what?" Gohan asked all too calmly.

"I didn't think it was that bad," Videl replied defensively, "I was just trying to get him to train me..."

A war cry echoed across the roof as Pi lunged for her, shouting, "Lemme go, I'm gonna kill her!" It took everything Kat had to keep the girl from throttling their human companion.

Gohan stepped between the irate girl and her target, holding his hand up and saying, "Pi, calm down. It's not her fault she's ignorant." Turning to Videl, he said, "You have no idea how lucky you are to still be alive Videl. To you, getting someone to train you might be fairly normal, but to Saiyans like Kaen and Pi, it's a lot more serious; to some, training a member of the opposite sex who's not a family member is like dating." At the confused look in her eyes, Gohan clarified, "Pi, Kaen's long-time girlfriend, is the only girl he has even trained, excluding family. When you tried to blackmail Kaen into training you, you were basically forcing him to cheat on her."

At the loud animal growl from the dark haired alien, Videl shrank back into herself, gasping in shock as she stuttered, "I didn't... I never... I didn't..."

Gohan calmly put a hand on Pi's shoulder, meeting her gaze, and the fire in her eyes slowly fizzled out, before, with a nod, she turned on her heel and walked away without another word, Kat on her heels. He turned back to Videl, a scowl on his face, as he muttered disgustedly, "I thought better of you Videl. And to think, I defended you..."

With this comment, Videl found herself wishing that Kaen _had_ killed her; she was a little scared that she'd rather be dead than disappoint Gohan, but she was too upset to worry about that now. Tears falling again, she started babbling, "You don't understand, I just... I just needed to know how he does what he does. You have no idea what it's like living in 'The Champ's' shadow. I have to get stronger; I have to! I need to prove myself, to prove I'm my own person, to prove I can take care of myself, so I can finally have the freedom to be me." Raising her head to meet Gohan's eyes, tears still streaming from hers, she whispered, so softly that even his Saiyan hearing had trouble picking it up, "Can you ever forgive me?"

A comforting smile spread across Gohan's face as he crouched down, opening his arms, and Videl wasted no time in jumping into his embrace. He ran a hand through her hair, muttering soothing nothings until her sobs stopped. Once she calmed down, he muttered, "It's okay Videl, I understand, but, it's not my forgiveness you really need it is?"

o-o-o

A bright light startled the peace in downtown Satan City, but not nearly as much as the hail of blue lightning that followed. The light dimmed, revealing a male figure, black in damage blue-and-white armour, and coated in dry blood, an insane grin on his face. He was here; he could _feel_ him. These people didn't look Saiyan, but he was definitely here. His grin broadened; ah well, he knew exactly how to draw him out, as he floated into the air and began firing.

--

Vegeta growled, his tail lashing out violently, "She did WHAT? Why didn't you kill her?"

Sighing, Kaen stood, his exhausted muscles protesting, "I would have, but Celloto's claimed her in all but rite."

Vegeta just scowled, "Fool boy. Of all the women on the planet, he picks not only that fool's daughter, but possibly the only one in existence exactly like his mother."

"You're one to talk Vegeta," Kaen replied with a tired grin, "You forget, I knew your mother." Vegeta opened his mouth to retort, but Kaen cut him off, holding up a hand and muttering, "Something's wrong..." Wasting no time on explanations, Kaen raced off as abruptly as he'd arrived, heading back to Satan City, leaving Vegeta with only more questions.

--

"Videl, I..." Pi sighed, pressing on, "I forgive you, alright? I know you didn't mean to cause trouble, it just... Don't... Don't ever do anything like that again, okay?"

Videl smiled nervously, "Don't worry, I... I won't. I know where I stand now, and I know he, and most likely you too, can easily... deal, with me." She was about to continue, but was cut off as her communicator watch started beeping. Pressing the 'receive' button, she was instantly met by the police chief's frantic message; she could understand little in the ramblings, but she picked up that there was a disturbance near City Hall, and, reportedly, Phoenix was involved. Pressing the button to reply, Videl said, "I'm on my way," before turning it off.

"What the hell was that about?" Pi asked, "Kaen's not even in the city; he's in West Capitol."

"How could you know that? Hell, how could he have gotten there this quickly?" Videl asked back, confused again.

Kat answered for her, "We know he's in West Capitol because we can sense his life energy there; he went there as soon as he left here, to work off some stress against Vegeta. And he got there by flying; surely you know we can do that by now?"

Videl just shook her head, "Whatever, I still need to go." Not given them any time for further dispute, she produced her copter, taking off.

Inclining her head in the direction of the receding yellow form, Kat asked, "Should we follow?"

Gohan just shook his head, "Nah, she can take care of it herself; I can't even sense anything above normal human level, and Videl can deal with those easily enough."

As they moved to head back to class, Pi paused, gazing in the direction of West Capitol as she muttered, "Strange, Kaen's coming back here already. I wonder why..."

o-o-o

Blue eyes cast around the scene before her, and Videl found herself having to resist the urge to gag and vomit. She'd arrived at City Hall moments ago, and felt sick to her stomach at the sheer number of dead bodies, and, worse still, partial bodies, singed and still smoking; the smell of burning flesh was almost overpowering. Walking carefully into the heart of the carnage, she saw a figure clad in what looked to have once been a royal blue spandex bodysuit, with white armour, but there were many holes in both, and the skin beneath, like much of rhe bodysuit itself, was encrusted with equal parts dirt and blood.

Putting on a brave facade, Videl said forcefully, "Alright you, drop whatever weapon you used to kill these people, put your hands in the air, and turn around slowly." The offender did one of those, turning to face her, his normally black eyes a dull grey, and his remarkably familiar face stained with blood. A hand flying to her mouth, she gasped, "Kaen? You did... this?"

The bloodstained figure glared at her, barking harshly, **"How do you know that name girl? Do you know where the other is? Produce him!"**

She wasn't sure what he'd said, but it was obviously his native tongue, like she'd heard before, and the tone alone made her assume it wasn't good. Raising both hands before her, she used a passive voice to say, "Look Kaen, I know you're angry at me for what I did before, and now that I know the full extent of it I'd be pretty angry too, but don't make a mistake you might regret later. Leave these people alone, and we can settle this between ourselves." She knew she was basically signing her death warrant, but she felt she had to do something to save the citizens she fought to protect.

He paid no attention to her statement, instead, muttering to himself in Saiya-Go, **"So, she knows him huh? Surely he hasn't taken to consorting with weaklings..."** Raising his right hand, a red ball of energy coalesced into being a few centimetres before his palm; Videl could feel the heat from where she stood. Now obviously speaking to her, he added, **"No matter. If I kill you, maybe that will drive the rat from his hole."** For the second time that day, Videl saw her death approaching, but this time, her saviour took an unexpected form.

--

Phasing in front of her, Kaen batted the blast away mere metres away from her; the errant blast destroyed an abandoned car nearby, but that wasn't his problem. "Hey!" He barked, "If anyone's killing the girl, it's me!"

The other Kaen chuckled darkly, "Ah, there you are; you're late. I got bored of waiting, so I decided to see how many weaklings I could kill before you got here."

"Well, you'll have to forgive my tardiness; it's quite a flight from West Capitol," Kaen drawled sarcastically, adding, "I'm surprised idiot 'fro-man hasn't shown up to try and deal with you... Actually, no, I'm not. He's probably hiding behind a rock somewhere. He always does when something stronger than him shows up..." Though shocked, Videl's brain filed that little jibe away for later; Kaen always seemed to tell her the truth, in a roundabout way.

"Who the hell are you talking about?" The second Kaen asked, curiosity showing on his usually bland features.

"Hercule," Kaen supplied with a shrug, "No doubt in the twenty-odd minutes you've been here, you've seen no less than five billboards, heard at least two dozen people praying to him for help like he's some God, and you've probably seen an ad or two on the TV's in the shop windows nearby."

A look of shock crossed the other Kaen's face, "Wait, he's real?"

Kaen just shrugged again, "Real enough to sire offspring apparently; the girl's his daughter, poor thing." Turning serious he asked, "Well, this is fun and all, but who are you? And don't give me that whole 'I am you' crap."

"Well, if you're going to spoil my dramatic moment, I'll get right to the point," he mock whined, his eyes showing a spark of life, before returning to the previous empty shell as he said, "My old name no longer holds any meaning, so I call myself 'Nijuushin'. I was once like you, with a good life, and a good woman, but it was ripped away from me, and I plan on getting it back. To do that, I need power; your power, to be exact, and the power of many before you."

"Well, I'm a little attached to it, so I'm afraid you're going to have to do without," Kaen, ever the smartass, quipped back, before saying seriously, "Look, I understand what you're doing. I've lost my mate before, and I..."

"Wait!" Nijuushin interrupted, his eyes burning for a moment, "'Before'? She's died, but isn't dead? You know how to bring the dead back to life?"

This, Kaen realised, was probably the worst thing he could have said, but, nevertheless, he casually remarked, "Well, people don't call me 'Phoenix' for nothing..." His eyes ablaze, Nijuushin leapt at him, and Kaen launched into the fray himself, the force of his ki-assisted jump breaking the bitumen behind him. The punches and kicks Kaen threw were not his full strength, designed purely to test the capabilities of his foe, and while Nijuushin quite clearly wanted to kill him, he was making the same exploratory blows, and neither of them were making any ground.

--

Three heads snapped in the direction of City Hall, matching confused looks on their faces. "What the hell?" Kat asked no one in particular, "Who is Kaen fighting?"

"You don't think he's decided to take it out on Videl after all?" Gohan added worriedly.

Pi just shook her head, "No, he's not mad; he released all of that against Vegeta. He's tired though, but I'm sure he can take care of himself; after all, I can't sense what he's fighting, so it can't be that tough. Besides, Videl's not even active. Whatever's going on, she's a spectator."

"Should I go help?" The demi-Saiyan asked.

Pi just shook her head, "No, he wouldn't appreciate that."

--

Kaen grabbed the punch thrown at his head, dragging Nijuushin forward with the momentum provided and kneeing him under the chin. Things were finally getting serious, and Kaen wasn't sure he could win; he was still tired from his venting against Vegeta. 'I've got to end this fast!' he thought to himself. Pressing the advantage, Kaen fed some of his remaining energy into his speed, launching punches and kicks seemingly at random to prevent defence.

On instinct alone he jumped up, drawing his legs to his chest, as a kick sailed under him, and as gravity took hold again he kicked Nijuushin on the chest with both feet, launching himself into the air. Once he'd put enough distance between the two he threw his hands back, a ball of red ki forming in each. Kicking his legs up, he spun upwards, throwing his arms forward until the balls fused, waiting until his combined hands were aimed at his foe before firing his trademark blast with a cry of "Inferno Blast!"

Nijuushin made no move to dodge, and within seconds Kaen saw why, as the blast dispersed harmlessly mere centimetres away from him as a blue energy shield shimmered into existence. Kaen bit back a curse as Nijuushin chuckled up at his exhausted foe, declaring, "Well, that was certainly a nice play, and an impressive blast. I might give it a go myself, as I destroy your weakling friend there!" Saying that, he threw his hands back just like Kaen had mimicking the technique perfectly, and firing the blast in Videl's direction. In his weakened state, Kaen knew there was no way he could get in front of that blast, let alone stop it, so he did the only thing he could.

"Rage Pyre!" The flame aura burst into life around him, and with his new strength he raced the blast, but still he couldn't catch it, so he did the next best thing; clutching his hands together, he slammed the blast towards the ground with an overhand strike. The resulting explosion rocked the area for no less than a block, the force of it uprooting concrete, and sending Videl flying backwards. Fortunately, she landed on a Perspex window which, while knocking the air from her lungs, cushioned her free flight; she missed a solid brick wall, which no doubt would have broken her spine, by half a metre at most.

"Another most interesting technique," Nijuushin remarked, an insane grin on his face. Settling back down on the ground, Kaen cast a quick eye over Videl, to make sure she was all right; it was strange, he found, that while he had tried to kill her, when someone _else_ tried he jumped to her defence. Thinking quickly, Kaen decided on a course of action to defeat his insane foe, blasting towards him with a sudden burst of speed. His grin slipping to a grimace, Nijuushin threw a haymaker at his approaching form, only to find it passing harmlessly through an illusion.

"Missed me," Kaen cried from behind him. Spinning around, Nijuushin fired a blast at him, only for it too to pass harmlessly through another image, and for Kaen, now further away, to declare mock-sympathetically, "Oh, so close." With a growl, the dimensional traveller lunged at him, finding another after image, and another, and another, until he wound up almost a block from where he started. This, Kaen decided, was far enough away from innocent bystanders, as he phased in a distance behind him, his right hand raised, and a black ball of ki in front of his palm. Grinning, he fired the blast with a cry of, "Let's see that fancy shield of yours block this one! Gravity Cannon!"

Again, Nijuushin made no effort to dodge, but before the blast hit Kaen willed it to detonate; after all, with this attack it wasn't an explosion that killed you. With a flash of dark light, the blast imploded, creating an artificial singularity, or black hole, the intense gravity drawing in everything in a 25-metre radius. Unfortunately, it appeared that Nijuushin was a quick study, as the disappearing after image proved, and before Kaen could react, he was met by a fierce punch to the face, sending him flying backwards uncontrollably.

--

Fear creeping into her voice, Pi muttered, "Something's very wrong... Kaen's losing, and I can't sense what to." Turning to her sister, she said, "We've got to get to the twins; anything that can hurt Kaen can easily kill them."

"But what about Kaen?" She asked, almost frantically, "You're not just going to leave him there are you? He might die!"

"Believe me Kat, I want him to die less than you do, but he can take care of himself; the kids can't." Pi reasoned, "Besides, Kaen has a knack for not dying when he ought to."

"I'm going to help him," Gohan declared, standing up, "Videl's still there, and I've got to get her to safety."

Pi just nodded, "Go; we'll be in the village. Bring her there." With that, Gohan raced out of the classroom, the girls grabbing their stuff, and his, and following him out, ignoring the teacher's protests.

--

Blue eyes opening painfully, Videl tried to ignore her body's protests as she forced herself to her feet. She was knocked to her knees harshly again by a sudden impact with the ground in front of her, her eyes widening in shock as she saw Kaen's form digging a trench up the road from the force of his crash. So deep as her shock she didn't notice a loose piece of bitumen become a projectile flying in her direction; not until it slammed directly into her forehead, and by then, it was _much_ too late, as she slumped forward, consciousness fading.

Dragging himself back up, Kaen cast his working right eye over the girl's form, his left swollen over; her ki was low, but steady, so she wasn't dying, just unconscious. He braced himself for impact as he noticed a red form moving swiftly into his direction, and within seconds the shoulder of his enemy drove itself into his chest, no doubt breaking a few ribs as he was again launched backwards, this time impacting heavily with the steps of City Hall.

Nijuushin scowled at him, muttering disgustedly, "You bore me. For once, I thought maybe I had found my equal, but once again I find myself proven wrong. Well, no matter; your power and knowledge will aid me greatly." He wasted no time in firing a massive blast, larger in size than he himself was.

Gritting his teeth as the blast drew closer, Kaen thought to himself, 'Dammit, I didn't want to have to do this, but I guess I've got no choice. I just hope he can't see me from there...' A flare of power, a burst of flame, and an explosion later, all that remained of Kaen on the steps of City Hall was a smoking hole.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

The part about Saiyans comparing training to dating just strikes me as something a race of warriors would do, and it just goes to highlight another difference between them, and humans. Also, I have no idea how good or bad I am at writing combat scenes, so...

I almost forgot I was going to update today... Well, better late that never (It's around quarter past one in the morning now...)


	28. Family Pride

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 26 - Family Pride

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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Nijuushin stood as still as a statue, silently observing the smoking hole; there was no way he could've gotten out of the way in time, so he had to be dead. Why then didn't he feel any stronger? Vaguely, he had the notion that maybe _this_ was as strong as he could get, but then, why he didn't have any new memories either? Maybe the Device was playing up, or maybe it just required more time? In any case, there was nothing left for him here, so he took to the air; he still had to find the girl.

--

The flames around him winking out, Kaen coughed a few times to clear his throat as he carefully picked himself up. His gambit had paid off, apparently, as Nijuushin had lost him; unfortunately, this also meant he'd lost Nijuushin, as, for some reason, he couldn't sense his energy. 'Probably the same reason my blast didn't work,' he mused to himself. Already, his mind was working out a plan to bring this new foe down; if anyone could bring down him, it was him... Suddenly, he grinned to himself; he'd found the perfect plan. He just needed to pay a visit to his old man's lab, and, fortunately, he still had his bike capsule on him...

o-o-o

"Neechan, you're home early. Where's niichan?"

Pi smiled down at the young girl. Oran and Lime had taken to calling Kaen 'niichan', and her and Kat 'neechan', ever since they'd heard Goten using the words on the weekend. While she'd never tell the two, she found it quite cute, but refrained from telling them for fear of upsetting them; as warriors, they'd never accept anything they did being cute. Picking her up and throwing her up onto her shoulders, she replied, "He's got some business to take care of first. Where's your brother?"

"I'm right here," came the reply, as the boy in question walked out of the nearby woods, trailed by his redheaded friend; they didn't appear to have been doing anything out of the ordinary for nine-year-olds, so he was obviously just showing her around. Then again, Faile did look a little flushed...

"Where are mum and dad?" Kat asked.

Oran just rolled his eyes, "In the city. They just found out about Truniz's girlfriend, so they insisted on having lunch with them, Kellre, and Raene."

"Then where's Falcon?" Pi asked the three children.

Oran gagged for a minute before pointing into the woods behind him, supplying, "Hawk came over 'bout half an hour ago, and the two have been sucking face in there ever since." The older girls noticed a light blush on the young redhead's face.

'Ah, that explains what they were doing in there,' Pi thought to herself, 'But the question is, whose idea was it to spy on them, Oran's or Faile's?' By the look on their faces, she assumed it was Faile's idea. She fought back a giggle as she remembered that it was around this age that she and Kaen had kissed for the first time, ironically after having watched an older couple kissing at _her_ behest, but there were more important things to deal with right now.

o-o-o

Nijuushin fought back a frustrated growl; he couldn't find the girl anywhere, and he wasn't in the mood to search the whole planet. Part of his mind just said to destroy the whole thing and be done with it, but he didn't know if he would still collect her essence that way, which left him to his search. 'Wait a minute,' he mused to himself, 'that weakling girl, she was obviously a friend of theirs; otherwise he wouldn't have bothered to save her. One of them is going to come back for her, so I'll just follow them.' He grinned to himself; a perfect plan.

--

Touching down at the point he'd last sensed his friends' energy, Gohan, currently disguised as Saiyaman, quickly spotted Videl's prone form, but there was no sign of Kaen; the destruction around him was a clear sign Kaen had _been_ here, but he wasn't here now. Picking the girl up carefully, Gohan blasted off again, flying to Pi's location as fast as his ki could take him.

--

Nijuushin grinned again; his plan was working. Some boy in a stupid outfit had come and taken the girl, and had _flown_ off. From what he'd seen of this planet's inhabitants, they couldn't fly, which meant that this boy was different. Blasting off, he was a little shocked to discover the speed at which the boy had taken off; even the vapour trail was already starting to fade. Oh well, it looked like he'd taken a pretty direct line, so he'd just follow; even if he didn't find the girl, he'd narrow his search.

o-o-o

Gohan set down near the house Kaen and the girls resided in, but couldn't find them anywhere. Carefully placing the injured Videl on the ground, and pressing the button on his watch to change his outfit back to 'Son Gohan' again, he spiked his ki, and he felt a ki flare in response. Sure enough, a couple of moments later, Pi calmly walked up. Upon noticing Videl lying on the ground, however, she sped up, kneeling beside her and asking, "What happened?"

Gohan, trying to remain calm and levelheaded, replied, "I don't know. By the time I got to the scene, the only one there was Videl, and from what I saw it seemed she was struck by a stray rock. There was no sign of Kaen, but it looked like there'd been a fairly intense battle."

Laying her hands over the pig-tailed girl's head, Pi used her power to heal her, looking up at him as she did so, "What do you think could've done that? I mean, I never sensed anything wrong, but Kaen was clearly on the losing end of that fight, so whatever it was had to be at least as strong as you."

Grimacing, Gohan said, "The only thing I can think of is some kind of android, but that leaves us with the question of 'why'." Gohan cut off as Videl started to stir, kneeling down and saying, "Hey there Videl, how are you feeling?"

Sitting up, she replied, "Surprisingly good actually. I remember this piece of road flying at my head, then, nothing..." Looking around, she asked, "Where are we, and why don't I hurt any more?"

Pi smiled at her, answering, "We're at my house, and I healed you; it's one of the powers I have."

Letting his concern show, Gohan asked, "Videl, what happened out there? Who did that?"

Shuddering a bit as the memory of the past hour came back to her, she stammered, "I... I'm not sure. It was Kaen, but yet, it wasn't, and there was another one, and..."

Placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, Gohan said soothingly, "Videl, calm down, take your time."

Taking a deep breath, Videl started, "Alright, this is what I remember..."

o-o-o

Nijuushin growled to himself; it was bad enough that he'd lost the trail of that poorly dressed kid, but he'd lost he trail in the middle of fucking nowhere. Hell, for all he knew the kid could have doubled back into the city, and there was no way he could have... 'Wait a minute!' He thought to himself, a grin forming on his face as he saw a couple of familiar shapes on the ground below, 'If I'm not mistaken, and I rarely am, then that's the twins down there.' His eyes widened as he took in the redhead with them, a memory of a past life flashing before his eyes, 'Well, well. It seems he knows Raven in this dimension too. I guess I should say hello.'

--

Oran's eyes widened in shock as he saw his brother land, covered in blood, and wearing a tattered old combat suit. Holding a hand out tentatively, he asked, "Niichan? Is that you?"

Lime quickly slapped his hand down, shouting, "Don't be an idiot! Niichan hasn't worn anything like that for five years!"

Oran just nodded, "You're right. And he doesn't have a ki signature either." His eyes hardening, he glared at the 'impostor' and shouted, "What did you do to our brother?"

He chuckled darkly, "Whatever do you mean? Oran, Lime, I _am_ your brother. Now, where's Pi?" Looking at the redhead behind them, he added, "What's wrong Raven, you look like you've seen a ghost."

Kat paled; he called her 'Raven', the name she'd been given but two days ago. "How do you know that name?" she asked, her voice wavering slightly, "Just who or what are you? I know you're not Kaen, you impostor!"

He laughed again, "What makes you say that?"

She just scowled, dropping into a fighting stance, "I know my brother, and you're not him!" While the Kaen look-alike's face didn't change, Kat noticed the subtle signs in his eyes to show he was surprised by that 'brother' remark.

Oran and Lime dropped into mirroring stances on either side of her, the young boy shouting, "I'll ask you one last time; what did you do to our brother?"

"If you must know, I killed him," the impostor Kaen replied with a shrug, "Just like I plan to kill Pi, and anyone else who gets in my way. Now, where is she?"

"We'll die before we tell you anything!" Lime stated bravely.

He just scowled, muttering sourly, "So be it." He disappeared in a burst of speed, slamming into Kat and sending her flying backwards, and lashing out at the twins with both legs, catching them in the chest. Using her feline agility, Kat flipped back to her feet in mid air, firing a blast of dark ki at their assailant, but it dispersed harmlessly on a blue field around him. Glaring daggers at her, he leapt towards her, but was driven into the dirt from a kick to the spine from a pint-sized attacker. With a snarl, he leapt back to his feet, and the three-on-one match resumed.

--

"Two Kaens?" Gohan asked incredulously, "Just how hard did you hit your head?"

"I know what I saw Gohan!" Videl scowled, "There were two Kaens. The one who tried to kill me earlier today, and the other one who was killing innocent people, dressed in a ruined blue bodysuit with what looked like it used to be white armour."

"You know it can't be a coincidence Gohan; she's describing Saiyan Battle Armour," Pi commented pointedly, "And you of all people know that the paradox rules don't always apply people like us."

"So, what happens now?" Videl asked curiously. She felt rather like Alice at this point, and wondered when she missed the rabbit hole.

"We find the dragon balls and make everything right again," Gohan replied with a shrug.

"Dragon balls?"

Gohan almost wanted to laugh at the confused look on Videl's face; he did let out a little chuckle as he remarked, "Ah, right, newbie. Sorry, I forgot you weren't in the know. The dragon balls are... A long story. Let's just say there's not much they can't do, and we've used them to right vast wrongs before; the people Cell killed, for one." Videl bit her tongue before she added 'except your dad'; she didn't want to rub salt into an obviously open wound.

"Won't do any good Gohan," Pi replied, shaking her head, "We still need to find the cause before we can fix the damage, otherwise it's all for nothing. We should see if we can find Kaen and take him to Dende."

"Who's Dende?" Videl asked, her confusion not abating.

Gohan just grinned, "The world's greatest medic."

_"My ears are burning,"_ an amused voice seemed to say from everywhere at once, while not being outside their own heads, _"Are you guys talking about me?"_

Looking around, Videl asked, "Did you guys hear that, or am I going crazy?"

Pi just grinned, "Seeing as how you haven't gone running for the hills screaming in terror yet, I'd say you're crazy, but no, you're not the only one who heard it."

"That's just Dende," Gohan added casually, "He's the current Guardian, or Kami, of Earth."

"You know God!" Videl almost shrieked.

_"It's more of a title, really."_ The disembodied voice spoke again, almost sounding bored, _"I mean, I watch over natural disasters, try and make sure they don't do a lot of damage, and I can see all over the world, but that's about as far as it goes."_

"So what's up Dende?" Gohan asked, "I know you didn't contact us just to comment on the weather."

_"No, I didn't."_ Gohan could almost see the grimace on his old friend's face as he said, _"This probably won't tell you anything you didn't already know, but I felt a... well, an anomaly in the natural order. I couldn't work out what it was, or if it was harmful, so I didn't warn you straight away, but our friend there is from a parallel dimension."_

Pi's head shot back in the direction she'd come from as she shouted, "The kids! He's here, and he's attacking them; I've got to stop him!"

_"Wait!"_ Dende's shout echoed in their minds, _"That's exactly what he wants. Pi, I saw that fight, and I overheard what he said; he's here in this dimension to kill you and Kaen."_

"I don't care!" She shouted back, "I'm not just going to stand here while everyone I care about gets killed protecting me;" without waiting for another word from anyone, she blasted off in the direction of the fight.

"Pi, wait!" Gohan called out, moving to follow her.

_"Gohan, stop!"_ Dende cried, _"You of all people can _not_ join this fight."_

"Why not?" Was Gohan's reply.

_"As I said, I saw the fight between him and Kaen,"_ Dende explained, _"He copies techniques, Gohan; he just needs to see them once and he can use them, and he has some device that cancels out ki blasts to boot. He's stronger than Frieza, so in your current state, he's stronger than you, and you, Mr. Gold Fighter, have a 'technique' that would guarantee his victory, and he'd only need to know it exists; trust me when I tell you he has more than enough power and anger to use it. He is easily as big a problem as the _last_ homicidal dimensional anomaly."_

"The last one?" Videl asked, "What last one?

Gohan just bit back a growl, "Cell." Grabbing the girl around the waist, and eliciting a yelp from her, he took off for the fight; he wasn't going to join in, but he couldn't stand by and do nothing either.

o-o-o

Nijuushin backhanded Oran away, sending him flying backwards uncontrollably until he broke clear through the trunk of one of the nearby trees. "Insects!" He shouted, lashing out at Lime as she attempted to kick him in the back, "You are nothing to me; just give up, and I will make all your pain go away."

"No chance!" Kat shouted back, slamming her knee into the back of his neck. "Even insects can take down a raging bull with time."

He slammed an elbow into her stomach; "Time? Your time is up!" Grabbing her leg, he spun around rapidly, gaining speed, before launching her towards the mountain range bordering one side of the field. She didn't get far, however, as Pi phased in and caught her before she'd even left the clearing. He grinned coldly at her, "Ah, there you are woman. I was wondering how long it'd take you to show up; I was almost getting tired of picking on the children."

"Bastard!" She growled, setting Kat on her feet before her green battle aura flared to life. "I'm going to make you pay for hurting my family and my mate."

The grin slipped from his face. 'Hurting her mate? So he's not dead after all? Fuck! That means I've got to track him down once I take care of her.' He growled to himself, 'Why does this universe have to be so _difficult_? I never had this much trouble before...' He just dropped into his stance, a mishmash of twenty-odd different styles. "Come on then girl; come and get me."

She didn't waste time on words, or on launching wave after wave of weak, ineffective ki blasts, like some Saiyans might have, because she knew, instinctively, that both wouldn't work on him; after all, despite what he was now, in some dimension he had been her mate, and no one knew her mate better than she did. Instead, she just let out a war cry and launched herself at him.

He forced himself not to grin as she approached. 'Yes, that's it, just a little closer...' When he felt she was close enough, he threw his hands back and launched a massive blast at her, but it passed harmlessly through her. 'Damn it, not another illusion!' He thought to himself, moments before an elbow drove itself into his right kidney.

"Seems you're just as predictable as my Kaen," Pi remarked offhandedly, following up with a jumping spin kick to the side of his neck, sending him careening into the grass. Vaulting back to his feet, he launched another blast at him, but she just slapped it back at him, watching it dissipate on the blue field that shimmered into view. "So, that's why Kaen lost to you," she mused to herself, "Things were unfairly stacked in your favour."

"Fair?" He spat incredulously, "Fair doesn't belong on the battlefield. Was it fair that my mate was stolen from me? No. It's high time you learned that life is not fair."

"I learned that when I lost four years with the man I loved!" She shot back, "You think that killing yourself again and again will make things right? You think she'll want you back, now that you've become whatever you are now?"

"Enough talk!" He shouted, "I am a god; there is no one my equal. She will understand; I will _make_ her understand."

"God?" Pi laughed, "You're no more a god than I am. You think Frieza was the strongest being in existence? Bzzt, wrong. You may be stronger than him, I'll grant you that, but Frieza has been dead here for ten years, killed at the hands of a Saiyan, and since then there have been Saiyans stronger than even him, by leaps and bounds."

"You're lying!"

"Really?" She grinned, "Well then 'god', come and test your mortality." Pi, in truth, was stalling for time; she didn't think she was strong enough to beat him alone, so she was trying to buy the others enough time to recover. That time was not granted her, however, as with a feral cry, a sickly familiar flame aura burst into life around him as he lunged for her, and it took all of her speed and reflexes, honed from countless battles with _her_ Kaen, to avoid the enraged fighter's onslaught.

--

Lime grinned tiredly to herself as she forced herself to her knees; no one could push people's buttons quite like her neechan. Looking over at her brother, who looked worse for wear than her, she mouthed, 'Should we join in?'

He shook his head, mouthing back, 'Not yet. We need time to recover.'

Looking over at her other neechan, she saw Kat struggling to stand; none of them were in any condition to help Pi just yet. All they could do was watch.

--

Pi dropped to the ground, ducking the kick that sailed over her head as she attempted to kick his legs out from under him, but as he fell he launched a surprise blast that caught her square in the chest, knocking her back until the two came to rest about ten metres apart on the grassy field. Recovering first, he charged towards her, stomping his foot at her chest, but she rolled out of the way just in time, planting both of her feet between his legs.

Clutching his groin, he wheezed, "You bitch!" He drew back his leg, kicking her hard in the back as she tried to dodge again, and she cried out in pain as she flew through the air, and wound up wrapped around a tree. He rushed to press the advantage, but staggered back as a tiny foot caught him in the throat, from a surprisingly brave young human girl. Landing on her feet, the young redhead rushed forward, slamming her fist into his groin again, and, as he dropped to his knees, jumped into an uppercut, catching him under the jaw.

His head snapping back, Nijuushin was surprised to realise that those blows actually hurt; the girl before him couldn't be older than ten, and she was one of those weaklings that seemed to be infesting this planet, yet she actually managed to hurt him. Staggering back, he charged up a blast, coughing out, "Girl, time to grant your death wish."

"NO!" In a surprising show of speed, even for him, Oran blasted forward, tackling the young girl out of the way, and catching the blast on his back for his troubles; the two crashed into the ground, Faile hitting her head harshly against the dirt as they slid a few metres, Oran's prone form coming to rest almost covering that of his human friend.

"BROTHER!" Lime shouted, launching herself at Nijuushin with an equally surprising show of speed and kicking him in the left temple with all her might. As he flew backwards, she chased after him, diving under him and launching off the ground to kick him in the spine, before phasing above him and dropping her foot into his gut. He recovered quickly as he fell, however, spinning to crash land on his feet, and firing a blast up at her as soon as the momentum wore off; she had no time to dodge, the explosion knocking her clear out of the sky, and, ironically, coming to land near her fallen brother.

Kat was next to leap back into the fray, her fists charged with dark ki; one flaw she'd noticed in the shield was that it only stopped direct ki assaults, not indirect ones like she was using now. She launched a barrage of punches at his chest, her blows creating more cracks in the already ruined armour, before he grabbed her arms and locked them under his, effectively pining her.

Leaning backward as far as her limited mobility would allow, she head butted him, using the slight freedom the blow granted her to launch herself off the ground, slamming both her knees into his chin, planting her feet on his chest, and kicking herself away from him and into the air. As she came back down again, she clutched her hands together, driving them down on top of his head in a powerful blow, before swinging them into the side of his face like she was holding a baseball bat.

Again, as he crashed into the ground he vaulted to his feet, firing blast after blast at her; the first one broke her defence, the second sent her soaring into the air, and they just kept coming. When the volley ended, the partially singed, smoking form of the semi-conscious cat girl crashed into the ground on the _other_ side of Oran, shifting back to her birth form as she fought the darkness encroaching on her vision.

"Kat! No!" Pi cried, dragging her injured form to her feet; she had only taken one major blow, two if you included her collision with the tree, but she'd taken a number of minor ones, and they were forcefully reminding her of their presence. 'Kaen's counting on me!' She thought fiercely to herself, 'He's trusting me to protect them. I will not let him down!'

With a shout, her battle aura returned, and, charging her fists with ki, she slammed them into the ground with a cry of "Ground Force!" A split second later, the ground below Nijuushin exploded, launching him into the air, and she was already there waiting for him; hands clenched together and charged with ki, she hit him with a massive overhanded hammer blow, shouting "Rock Crusher!" She sped after his falling form, driving her knee into his back and slamming him into the ground hard enough to grind him almost six feet into the dirt.

Standing a safe distance away, Pi stared intently at the hole, panting heavily, as she waited his return; she didn't have to wait long, as, with a mighty flare of ki, the ground exploded outwards, showering her with dirt, and, while she was distracted, a shoulder was slammed into her chest, knocking the air from her lungs, and sending her flying backwards to come to rest, on her knees, in front of the others.

--

Seeing everyone else more or less down for the count, Gohan clenched his fists, grinding his teeth together as he growled out, "I've got to help them."

"No Gohan!" Videl said, panicking slightly as she rushed in front of him to stop him leaving her, "You heard what Dende said: you're supposed to stay out of this fight no matter what."

"If I stay out of this fight, they die," He retorted morbidly, "And I've already killed one person through inaction; I will _not_ do that again!" Pushing her back behind him, Gohan blasted towards Kaen's inter-dimensional double.

--

Noticing the boy approaching out of the corner of his eye, he pretended not to see him as he charged a blast in his right hand. At the last second, he spun towards the impudent boy, catching him in the gut with his knee and growling, "Stay out of this boy; it has nothing to do with you!" As if to punctuate his statement, he fired the blast at the brat, sending him back the way he came to crash into the ground next to the human girl, coughing up blood; in his haste, Gohan had forgotten to power up, and thus was little stronger than Videl at this point.

Turning back to his 'family', he raised his closed right hand, declaring, "Well, this has been fun; I haven't had a workout like this in ages, and I've fought armies. I never expected to face this level of resistance, but now it's time for you to die." Pi's eyes widened in shock; she recognized this technique. Opening his hand, a ball of pure black ki grew to around basketball size in front of his palm, the sphere seeming to even absorb the nearby light. Aiming it directly at them, he grinned a callous grin, starting to say, "Gravity..."

Pi never heard the end of that statement.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

I decided to update tonight instead of tomorrow for two reasons, the first being that I, like an idiot, rushed to update the last chapter thinking it was Sunday, when it was actually Saturday, thus today is the standard 4 days after I've been doing.

The second reason is that I've got an exam tomorrow at 5:45 pm, meaning I won't get back until late, and I'll probably be too buggered to care. This exam is the first of three finals, which, if I do well enough on, will allow me to graduate from uni, so, wish me luck. I'm gonna need it... The second exam is at 8 am Saturday...


	29. A Warrior Returns

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 27 - A Warrior Returns

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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A victorious smirk on his face, he prepared the most effective technique he'd recently acquired, preparing to utterly destroy all the fools who's dare injure him, starting the chant, "Gravity..." He was cut off rather abruptly by a figure in black diving from the sky to land on it's hands, and, vaulting off those, kicking him squarely under the chin for at least the fourth time today. As he fell backwards from the impact of the blow, he lost control of the blast, firing it wildly behind him, and accidentally wiping out a portion of the 437 Mountain Range; fortunately, an uninhabited area.

Flipping back to it's feet, the figure revealed itself to be none other than Kaen, wearing his Phoenix armour, no doubt provided by the nanotech watch his father created. Grinning at his fallen double, he taunted, "Uh uh, not today, and especially not with my own technique."

Pulling himself back up, Nijuushin growled, "You again? You don't know when you're beaten do you?"

Kaen just kept grinning, "Not again; still. I had to take a breather in round one, but it's high time for round two, and this time, I came prepared." Holding up his left arm, he asked, "This look familiar, hmm?" Kaen grinned wider at the subtle look in his opponent's eyes when he saw that Kaen himself now had a ki dispeller. "Surely you don't believe that _your_ Avarrdo was the only one to build one of these?" Inside, Kaen was sweating; his dad had never actually managed to get the dispeller fully operational. He just hoped it would work when it needed to.

"You can't fool me boy; I _am_ you," Nijuushin growled, preparing a blast, "I think you're bluffing." Firing the blast, it took all of Kaen's resolve to keep up his cocky facade as the blast approached, but through sheer willpower he maintained his air of indifference; his faith proved to be well placed, as the red energy field shimmered into view around him mere milliseconds before the blast hit, dispersing the energy harmlessly.

"Whoopsie, I think you failed," Kaen jibbed, "Care to try that again?" He could have kicked himself for that remark, as Nijuushin took him up on the offer, firing a larger blast again, but again it was dispelled harmlessly, and the third blast, surely a killer, also failed to harm him. He wasn't sure how much more the device could take though, especially considering his rough patch-job to get it _this_ operational, so instead he just held up his hands dismissively and said, "Surely you realise how pointless it is by now?"

With a growl, the dimension hopper reabsorbed the final blast, standing upright again and muttering, "Well, what do we do now, huh?"

His grin morphing into a smirk, Kaen fell into his offensive stance, replying, "We settle this the old fashioned way, that's what." With a scowl, Nijuushin dropped into his stance, and upon some unheard siren, the two charged for each other. Nijuushin made the first attack, throwing a clothesline at Kaen, but he ducked under it, balancing on his right leg as he used the forward momentum to spin on his heel, launching a reverse roundhouse kick at his opponent's head. He leant away from it though, and back flipped over the following sweep; when gravity took hold, he dropped down with an overhead slam, but Kaen threw his arms up in time to block, yanking his opponent's arms apart and flipping backwards, his right knee catching his opponent's nose, drawing first blood of the fight.

Lashing out with a kick, Nijuushin caught his gravity-defying foe in the back, but Kaen just leant into the hit, feeding the energy into the momentum of his jump, and landing awkwardly on his extended right hand. Again, he rushed to press the advantage, but Kaen swung down, kicking his legs out from under him, and he wound up diving right over his target.

Flipping back to his feet, Kaen resumed his stance, waiting for his opponent to attack him, rather than attacking first; if there was one thing he knew about himself, it's that he was too impatient to wait for his opponent to attack. It was strange having to fight as someone critical of his own style, but it had worked so far, so he decided to run with it. Sure enough, no sooner had Nijuushin leapt to his feet than he was charging him, throwing his whole body weight behind a single punch.

Raising an arm to block, he knocked the punch aside, and, anticipating, the follow-up kick, swung his arms up to trap Nijuushin's foot between his forearms, before throwing him over his shoulder. This time he did press the advantage, but with a flare of ki, Nijuushin spun onto his feet, spinning on his heel and driving his knee into Kaen's stomach. Kaen prepared a blast in one hand, but rather than wasting his time throwing it at his opponent, he lobbed it at the ground as his momentum carried him back. The resulting explosion was only large enough for a minor shower of earth, but it served its purpose; Nijuushin couldn't follow him.

When the dust cleared, the two charged as one, fists meeting fists, kicks meeting kicks, as they traded blows, each strike met by one in kind. Kaen was the first to break rank, grabbing Nijuushin's fist as the punch sought his face, and when Kaen punched back he found himself in the same situation. Digging their heels in, the pair tried to force the other to yield the lock-up, but neither gave any ground, so, as one, they released one another, jumping back, and sizing each other up.

Almost as one, the two grinned, Nijuushin remarking, "I must admit, I haven't had a fight this fun in ages, but I think it's about time we got serious." Kaen just nodded in reply, and as one, they shouted, "Rage Pyre!" Matching flame aura's burst to life around them, the grass below them actually catching fire. Even though he couldn't sense his rival's energy level, Kaen knew that, now, he was outclassed; Rage Pyre was, after all, a multiplier, not a fixed bonus, and his base form just wasn't as strong. Nonetheless, he threw his all into the fight; if he was going to die, he was gonna do it fighting.

--

As consciousness returned to Oran, the first thing he became aware of was how much pain he was in; his back felt like it was on fire. However, he'd had plenty of training into setting aside pain, so he merely 'switched off' the nerve signals like his brother had taught him. It was then that his brain processed the second thing he noticed; namely, how remarkably soft the ground felt.

Looking down, he saw a very familiar form lying beneath him - that of his clearly female friend Faile, also regaining consciousness - but, rather than the normal young child reaction of instantly jumping off as though she were diseased, he casually using what little ki he could gather to float up a tad, so he wasn't lying on her any more; there was... something about this girl, but he didn't know what. As she opened her eyes, he offered her a hand up, asking, "Are you alright?"

She accepted the hand, shaking her head and muttering, "Head... hurts." He made sure she was steady on her feet before letting her go, and started to turn around, to check out that niggle at the back of his senses, before her gasp drew his attention again. "Your back - it's torched! It looks like you've been hit with a flamethrower!"

Oran refrained from telling her that being hit by one of his brother's blasts _was_ like being hit with a flamethrower; instead, he just shrugged, wincing a bit as the motion pulled on the burnt muscle, and replied, "No biggie; I've had worse injuries training with niichan." The concerned look didn't leave her face, but now that he knew she was all right he could focus on the third thing he noticed; the remarkably large, and extremely familiar, power signature he could sense nearby. Turning to face the source, he could see two red auras dancing around each other. Resting on his knees, he absently noticed Faile sitting down next to him as he whispered out, "Kaen..." He didn't notice his tail snake it's way protectively around her waist.

--

Kaen slammed harshly into the ground, sliding for a few metres before he dug his hands in, flipping back to his feet. He was losing, and he knew it, but he couldn't risk ascending; if Nijuushin ascended, he wasn't sure that even Gohan could beat him. He just... didn't seem to be taking damage. He couldn't be sure, given his inability to sense his opponent's ki, but Kaen could see the subtle signs in his eyes to know that no matter what Kaen did, he wasn't losing strength. There was something else too, something he barely spotted in the way he acted, the way he moved, the way he talked... Almost like he was someone else.

A fist crashed into his face, and again he was sent sprawling. "Look at you," Nijuushin jeered, "You're pathetic." There, there it was again; an echo in his voice, like a chorus speaking at once in near perfect synch. He grinned to himself as he figured it out, standing up and wiping a trail of blood from his mouth.

"You're one to talk," he retorted, "You're not even fighting with your own power, are you? You know, I was wondering what you meant by needing my power. I thought you just meant you were going to steal my energy, use it to fuel yourself, but that's not the case, is it? No, you plan on stealing my soul, like you did those before me, because _your_ soul is too weak!"

"I'll show you weak!" Nijuushin snarled, dashing forward with enough speed to break the sound barrier as he delivered a crushing blow to Kaen's chest, cracking his ribs for the second time that day. Walking slowly up to him, sure of his victory, he continued, "I will admit, I am yet to meet a version of me of your strength. Even now, I can almost feel you're still not using all of it, which means you can't; why wouldn't you use your power to save your life? No matter, I will put your power to good use." As self-assured in his victory as he was, he never noticed Kaen's right arm moving closer to his right shoulder.

His hand clutching the hilt of 'Plan B', Kaen waited until Nijuushin was standing right over him, no doubt gloating silently, before striking; in one swift motion, Kaen spun to his feet, drew his sword, and slashed at the device on his double's arm. Jumping back, Nijuushin cast one eye at The Device, noticing a slash along part of the circuitry, but nowhere near any of the essential parts. Glaring at his foe, he noticed Kaen grinning, and was about to say something when Kaen spoke; "I can feel you now. I know exactly how strong you are."

--

Tiredly, Pi grinned at her mate, thinking to herself, 'Was wondering what took him so long...' Now that she could sense what they were up against, she knew why the four of them got beaten so easily, and realised that Kaen couldn't win on power alone; fortunately, Kaen had a lot more than pure power going for him, if he remembered to use it.

--

"Where the hell did that sword come from?" Videl asked incredulously, more to herself than anything considering her only company was the fallen Gohan, and surely _he_ couldn't answer her, right?

Wrong. Pushing himself up slightly, Gohan coughed once and replied, "He's always got it on his back, you just can't see it. I wouldn't be surprised if he slept with it on."

"Gohan!" Videl exclaimed, rushing over and asking worriedly, "Are you alright? Hold still; you were coughing up blood, so you've probably got internal bleeding, and..."

Gohan just calmly placed a finger over her lips, silently asking her for quiet as he said, "I'm fine Videl. Out of everything, it's my pride that hurts the most."

Confusion in her eyes, she asked, "Pride?"

He nodded, "Yeah, pride. I'm one of the best fighters on the planet, but I got levelled by a single kick. Don't worry though, I'll be okay; I've survived a broken neck, I think I can handle some fractured ribs."

Videl prided herself on being able to spot a lie at a hundred yards, and this time, she could tell that Gohan was completely serious; he had _really_ survived a broken neck? When? She wasn't sure she wanted the answer to that question, so instead she changed the subject; rather, she changed the subject back to what it had been before. "What do you mean he has that sword with him all the time? Even when he took his shirt off at the club on Saturday, or when he tried to kill me earlier?" Morbidly, Videl noticed it was getting easier to mention how she almost died at Kaen's hands.

Looking thoughtful, Gohan replied, "Well, on Saturday he probably left it backstage, but yeah, he would have had it at school today." From the look on her face, he could tell she had another question, and could hazard a guess as to what it was; "I don't honestly know exactly why you can't see it - the way they explained it, it wasn't deliberate - but in any case, his sword is an extension of his body, like Pi's is hers, and somehow your eyes just naturally look around it unless drawn to it's presence for any reason, like being attacked with it."

Videl nodded, satisfied with the answers, until she suddenly realised something; "Wait, Pi has one too?"

--

Kaen pressed forward, slashing repeatedly at his foe, never once letting up; thus far, every attack had been dodged, but he couldn't dodge all of them. As a strategic measure, Kaen tried to make his attacks as amateurish as possible, while still packing the power required to do damage should he make contact; if there was one weakness Kaen knew he had, it was overconfidence, and if he could make Nijuushin confident that Kaen knew nothing about sword fighting, he'd drop his guard.

Eventually, he managed to push him back to the tree line, and, as Nijuushin dived out of the way of one strike, his sword embedded itself in the trunk of a tree; this was the moment he'd been waiting for, when his opponent's overconfidence would be a step towards his downfall. Sensing Nijuushin's incoming attack, he levered himself off the ground, spinning in midair and catching his foe off guard with first a kick from his left leg, then another from his right, before, still airborne, he wrenched the sword free, slashing at him rapidly.

Landing on all fours (well, three of them, as his right arm still held his sword above the ground) Kaen's eyes shot to his opponent, to take stock of the damage. By the looks of things, he'd caught him with three attacks: the first, a shallow-looking cut across the left side of his face; the second, an upward slash across his back, thick at the base and thin near the shoulder, no doubt a result of Nijuushin's spin after the first blow; and the third, a fairly deep gash along the front, from the shoulder to the end of the ribcage, diagonally across his body. None of the wounds were bleeding, the flame aura around the blade instantly cauterising the wounds, but, for the first time, Kaen had done lasting damage; his opponent's ki level had dropped.

Said opponent was currently glaring at him with barely repressed hatred, spit flying out as he growled, "How DARE you! Insolent whelp!" Raising his right arm to the side and extending his pointer finger, an orange, rapier-like blade of ki seeming to grow from it, he added, "I didn't want to do this - that's an impressive weapon after all, one I wouldn't mind having myself - but playtime is OVER!" He charged for his opponent, confident the blade of ki could cut clean through whatever resistance it met - after all, so far he'd found nothing capable of halting it - but he was in for a rude shock as Kaen raised his weapon to the fore, blocking the attack, and the blade held fast. "Impossible!" he cried, "This blade can cut through anything!"

"Anything except this, obviously," Kaen shot back, grinning, "This is a ki-forged blade Chuckles, built from soulsteel and orichalcum, and as such, it's completely immune to any and all harmful ki effects." His grin slipping into a firm look, he added, "It's time to show you the true strength of my soul."

Nijuushin just growled again, pushing away and lashing out with strike after strike, but each time the ki-wrought blade met the ki-forged blade, neither giving an inch; to say the least, it was infuriating to the dimensional traveller that, no matter what he did, he just couldn't slip through his dimensional twin's defences. A smirk came to his face as he was struck by inspiration, waiting for just the right moment before acting; as Kaen struck, he raised his left hand, batting the sword aside, and burning his hand in the process, but, with his opponent off guard, he spun around, raking his blade along Kaen's arm, elbow to wrist.

Crying out in pain, the sword slipping from his grasp, Kaen fell to the ground, clutching his right arm with his left. 'It's just a flesh wound, it's not serious,' Kaen tried to reassure himself, flexing his hand a few times to make sure it still worked. Fortunately, it seemed he was right, and that, thanks to his inherent resistance to fire, and heat in general, the ki blade had only burned through skin and flesh, leaving the muscle unharmed. That didn't mean it didn't hurt like a bitch though.

Nijuushin smirked to himself, walking over to his fallen foe's sword, and barking a laugh as, when he picked it up, it seemed to shift from a plain, straight-edged grey blade, to a red tinged, flame-styled one instead; the same way it had looked while Kaen was carrying it. "So, the sword's not only ki-forged, but ki bonded as well. I'm going to enjoy using this weapon..." An insane grin on his face, he added, "Especially to kill you. How ironic; killed with your own sword."

As Nijuushin raised the sword for the killing blow, Kaen could hear Pi's voice in his mind, shouting for him to get up, and he didn't disappoint. Pushing himself up to balance on his uninjured left arm, he kicked up with both his legs, catching his foe unprepared first in the stomach, then the chest. He completed the motion by raising his right hand up, catching the hilt of a second sword thrown his way, and, essentially, 'walking' himself up into a back flip, dropping into stance and holding the weapon ready.

--

Videl's mouth dropped in shock as she saw Pi reach over her left shoulder, drawing a sword almost identical to Kaen's, seemingly from no where. The only difference she noticed was the blade; where the blade of Kaen's sword was jagged, and seemed to glow a brilliant red, Pi's seemed more straight-edge than a normal sword, and looked a deep green. She was about to ask Gohan why they were different when she noticed Pi throw the sword at the downed Kaen, and, as he sprung back into action, she saw the green blade fade to a dull grey, then into the flame-red Kaen's sword had been before; this was, to say the least, surprising.

"Cool huh?" Gohan asked, seeming to know exactly what she was thinking, "From what they've told me, they made the swords themselves, and changing shape is but one of the tricks they can do." Videl said nothing, but the look of awe on her face spoke a thousand words.

--

Nijuushin's growl deepened as, despite holding his opponents weapon, he _still_ could not finish him off. Every time he picked up a new way to use the sword, this dimension's Kaen pulled a new move out of his ass, and he was back to square one again. 'This will learn me,' he thought darkly to himself, 'to never underestimate my opponent. He's obviously been trained how to sword fight, and trained well - why else would he carry one? - but idiot me took him at face value when he started swinging it around like a novice.' Though he'd never learned the sword himself, he could tell his opponent had much skill with the blade; one of his 'past lives' had watched his oathbrother use a sword.

He could tell that there was more to this sword than being just a bladed weapon; he could almost _feel_ it, like it had a soul of it's own, but that was impossible, right? Actually... He'd recently found that many things he'd labelled 'impossible' seemed to be _very_ possible in this universe, so maybe there _was_ more to this sword than he thought, or would believe if told.

He was proven very right as Kaen decided it was time to end this fight. Spinning around, there was a flash of light, and flame, when Kaen's back was to his opponent, and when he turned back around again, there was a sword in each hand; they looked slightly different than normal, but he couldn't work out how. Grinning, Kaen flipped the swords around until the blades rested against his forearms, saying, "It's time I upped the ante, don't you think?" He dropped into a stance resembling that of a kick boxer; or, for those in the know, a praying mantis.

As Kaen pressed his attack again, Nijuushin found it harder and harder to push back, being forced on the defensive as strike after strike came. This, in truth, was Kaen's entire plan currently. He knew he was taking a risk by using the sword clone technique, and he knew that, given time, Nijuushin would work out how to use it, so he didn't give him the time to figure out the details, and slowly, strikes started to get through.

Nijuushin growled again; enough was enough. With a shout, his aura flared up, igniting in an intense, albeit contained, explosion, driving Kaen back. In a sudden burst of inspiration, the pins fell into place, unlocking the new technique in Nijuushin's mind, and, with a grin, there was a burst of flame, and when it cleared, he was holding two swords, identical to Kaen's pair. Still grinning, Nijuushin commented, "I meet your ante, and I raise you further."

--

Videl gasped in a combination of shock and horror as the alternate Kaen seemed to, for lack of a better word, step out of himself; one minute, there was one man, holding a sword in each hand, and the next, he stepped left, without moving, and there were two of them, each holding one sword each, in opposite hands. Now, Videl may not have known much about what was happening up to this point, but she did know one thing; Kaen was now behind the eight ball.

Casting her eyes around, she saw that everyone looked just as shocked as she felt, but there was something... defeated, in their eyes, like they had already accepted Kaen had lost. With a gasp, she noticed two people in the trees nearby, hiding behind one of the large trunks, shocked and scared looks on their faces, no doubt like the one on hers; Hawk and Falcon, if she remembered correctly. They caught her eyes, and, making sure the two combatants weren't looking, waved them over.

Keeping low, the two of them sprinted over, pausing every time the two - or was it three? - combatants seemed to look their way. When they reached her, Videl asked, "How long have you been watching?"

"Since it sounded like World War Five began," was Hawk's dry, smart-ass reply.

"What the hell is going on?" Falcon asked, fear underlying her voice.

Videl just shook her head, replying, "I don't really know myself. All I know is that the Kaen wearing the ruined blue outfit is, like, some alternate dimensional being trying to kill the one in black, or something; I didn't catch everything." Videl cast her eyes at Gohan, hoping that her crush could explain better than she could, but his eyes were locked on the fight, a grim look on his face; she'd be surprised if he even knew the other two were there.

--

Kaen bit back a curse as he blocked the incoming strikes; now, it was him that was on the defensive. With two opponents, Kaen was finding it harder and harder to find an opening, and it was starting to wear on his stamina; unlike his opponent, Kaen could only keep going for so long. He knew it was only a matter of time until he would lose this fight, unless he could find a way to even the odds again.

The attacks kept coming, thick and fast, and this time it was he who was on the receiving end of a swarm of minor cuts, quickly shredding the top half of his bodysuit, and slicing through the armour like a chainsaw through paper. Kaen quickly decided that he had to end this fight _now_, and the only way to do that was with a risky gamble. With a shout, Kaen flicked his two swords upwards, causing his two opponents to jump back a step as the swords sailed skyward, and putting him in prime position to use his new plan; he quickly threw his hands in front of his face, closing his eyes and quickly charging ki into his hands, before the ki exploded in a blinding light; "Helios Flare!"

With his foes temporarily blinded, Kaen quickly caught his swords again before the cloned sword disappeared, and, with a spin, planted the left sword into the stomach of one of his foes; needless to say, he was a little surprised when the sword passed through it without seeming to cause a wound, or leave any blood, yet he couldn't pull it out again. He was even more shocked when the fighter grinned at him, seemingly _not_ blinded, while the other foe clearly could not see; that, unfortunately, quickly changed.

His eyes clearing, Nijuushin grinned as he took stock of the situation, jibbing, "I see you found out the hard way that my double is little more than a hologram with telekinesis." His grin slipping, he added, "That was a good play, better than I gave you credit for, and had you chosen better, you would have won." He raised his sword, his double doing the same, and Kaen knew there was no way he could block both of them with one sword still wedged in the gut of the double.

Releasing hold of the cloned sword and willing it to detonate, he tried to block the two incoming blows with a single sword; needless to say, he didn't fare so well. He was successful in blocking Nijuushin's blow, but the double's sword found it's mark, and he quickly closed his eyes as he felt it raking against his face, moments before his cloned sword detonated, dispelling the illusionary double a moment too late.

--

Pi cried out in shock and mutual pain as Kaen fell to the ground, her sword slipping from his grasp and shifting back to normal. She moved to go to him, but he quickly raised a hand up, silently telling her to stop; he was going to finish this himself, one way or another. While she trusted her mate, she still commented telepathically, _"You don't go dying on me now, or will personally bring you back so I can kill you again myself."_ She could almost see Kaen smiling in her mind.

--

Kaen forced himself to breathe deeply, focusing his energy inwards to speed up his natural healing as he used a technique he'd taught his siblings to ignore the pain; right now, he couldn't be sure whether or not the eye was damaged, or whether using it would further any damage there might be, but he wasn't taking any chances. Subtly, he tried to use the basic telekinesis Flute had taught him, his sword slowly sliding across the grass to his hand.

Nijuushin slowly walked up to him, savouring his moment of triumph, despite how badly the last few times had gone; obviously, old habits died hard. "Look at you," he taunted, "I thought you were going to show me the power of your soul. You _are_ the first to hurt me, I'll grant you that, but you never stood a chance. It was a fun game though..." Spinning the sword around, he raised it above his head, fully intent on stabbing his fallen opponent in the back after one final comment, "Game over."

In a flurry of motion, the sword flew to the hand of the not-so prone Kaen, who quickly spun around and raised his weapon to the fore as his opponent struck, the two bodies colliding. The assembled crowd gasped in shock again at the blade which burst through Kaen's back, dripping with his life's blood, and Nijuushin looked very satisfied with himself until he made one major realisation; he wasn't the only one hurt.

Panting, wincing, and holding his right eye shut, Kaen tried to ignore the pain in his left side, screaming at him; it felt like the blade had gone clear through his left lung, but it had missed his heart, and he could live with only one lung. Gritting his teeth, Kaen drove _his_ blade in further, despite the fact the haft was already pressed against his foe's ribcage; the blade had gone clean through the centre of Nijuushin's chest, the flat blade looking like it might have sliced, if not severed, his spine.

Forcing himself to his feet, and forcing his opponent up in the doing so, he quickly raised his right leg, kicking his opponent back, and driving them apart, the swords slipping out of each other's flesh. With a flash of light, Kaen spun himself, and his sword, in a tight arc, and the blade cut cleanly through his opponent's elbows; on reflex, his left arm reached up to grab his sword, and his tail, unbidden, grabbed the device that slipped off his opponent's severed forearm.

Completing the motion, Kaen planted his newly acquired sword partway in his opponent's forehead, just enough to break the skull, before muttering, "The game's over when I say it's over, and it's over now." With a grunt, a gout of red flame burst forth from the sword, completely incinerating his foe's head, and much of his torso in the doing. Raising the device his tail held to arm level, he flicked it into the air, slashing with both swords, and it seemed to take the contraption a few seconds to realise it was destroyed, before, as gravity took hold again, it fell into four neat pieces.

His eyes widened in shock as his mind and body were assaulted by... something he couldn't describe, but nothing more than a grunt escaped his lips; well, his left eye opened in shock, but his right he managed to keep closed through force of will. Turning to face his mate, the swords slipped from his grasp as he grinned tiredly, he dropped to his knees, casting his gaze over the assembled onlookers and saying, "Hey, don't 'spose anyone's got a spare shirt I can borrow..." before his strength left him, and he collapsed against the ground.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

And the dramatic three-part fight scene draws to a close. Honestly, I have no idea if this was any good or not, but hey, it's done. I realise that, in the eyes of the reader, I might have made Kaen look a little overpowered in this fight, but I felt like showing that, even fairly low-powered fights like this one can still be fairly brutal. It's a fact many people seem to forget come the Cell Saga.

Now, with this chapter, the series starts to draw to a close. In total, I've got 3 chapters and 1 omake left before I'm done. Because of this, I'm gonna give a quick recap on the remaining 'questions of interest' type stuff I've been giving, see if anyone wants to take a stab at it before I end the series. The answers will be posted with chapter 30, or, in numbering, 33 (as the chapter after this'll come up as 30, and it's not that one).

Now, the remaining two questions:  
1. What is the second, more subtle VGCats reference? Keeping in mind it's related to the first one, which was Leo and Aeris, if you can't remember (Leo and Aeris being the names of the two cat-people characters from VGCats).  
2. What is the hidden meaning behind the names of Kaen and Pi's children from the second-last alternate universe, Rash and Tama? Keeping in mind that, like all Saiyan names, they're both food related, and the two foods the names come from are linked in some way.

With that taken care of, it's time for review replies. It's been a while since I got to give comments to review, so, welcome back ten.noitcifnaf. As for chapter 25 (or 27, as refers to it), Gohan never suggests that he should have let Kaen kill Videl. I assume you got that idea from his "And I defended you." line. While I admit I didn't explain it, there was two reasons for that line.  
1: He wasn't saying "I should have let him kill you", he was saying "And I told everyone you were harmless." He knew she'd cause trouble eventually, but not stumble into such a big problem.  
2: The comment was specifically designed to trigger a reaction. People only truly explain their motives when faced with losing something very important to them if they don't, so, he gave her the incentive.  
And yes, Kaen's reaction was very much in character. In case it hasn't been clear enough, he's very twitchy about anything that might jeopardise his relationship, because of all the trouble they've had in the past. Basically, whether she meant to be or not, she was a threat, and threats are removed with extreme prejudice.

With chapter 26 (28), you're right in saying that I didn't want Gohan getting involved in the fight - after all, it's not his fight - but I _can_ justify the 'forgetting to power up' part: a) he keeps his power level low at school, to avoid slip-ups that might get Videl on his case demanding answers; b) he was told not to turn Super Saiyan, which can be thought of to amounting to 'don't power up'; c) being around Videl screws up his common sense; d) he was a spectator that decided to join in on impulse, and thus didn't think to prepare; e) he wasn't really angry, just frustrated with having to stand and watch, thus the lack of emotional power upgrades.  
Before you start poking holes in any of these - and I realise there's holes large enough to drive a herd of elephants through easily - I'm not denying that Gohan was just written out of the fight, but rather than having him stand there, I decided to have him make a rookie mistake instead, if only because it's something for someone to annoy him about later.


	30. A Not So Simple Wish

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 28 - A Not-so Simple Wish

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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No sooner had Kaen fallen than Pi took off, rushing over to her injured mate, with Kat and the three kids hot on her heels. Crouching next to him, she quickly checked his vitals, seeing that, despite how bad his injuries looked - especially that hole through his chest - he would, with treatment, be fine. Quickly sheathing her sword, and sliding Kaen's under the sheath on her back, she turned to her sister and said, "Kat, quickly, put your hands on either side of the wound, help stem the blood loss."

Kat did just that, placing one hand on either side of the hole in his chest, trying not to wince at the sheer volume of Kaen's lifeblood staining her hands, as Pi set her hands against the centre of his chest, her palms glowing green as she used her power to try and heal him. Borderline frantic, Faile asked, "Is Phoenix gonna be okay?" The twins looked calmer than her, but she could see their worry in their eyes.

She didn't want to upset them further, but at the same time she couldn't bring herself to lie to them. "I hope so," she replied, "His injuries are pretty bad though; it's beyond my power to heal him. We need to get him proper help."

"I can help with that," Gohan supplied, walking up, with the three humans following him, "We'll take him to Dende. There's nothing Dende can't heal."

Worried smiles on their faces, the twins cried together, "Well, let's go then. Time's a wastin'."

"I'm coming with you!" Videl declared boldly.

Gohan just nodded, "Alright then. You guys wanna come too?" He directed the question at the shell-shocked Hawk and Falcon.

"What kind of vehicle do you have that could fit all of us and get him to this 'Dende' in time to save his life?" Hawk asked, confused with the entire situation.

Gohan just smiled cryptically, replying, "Who said anything about a vehicle? Everyone form a chain." The others knew what was going on, Pi placing one hand on Kaen, and the other on Gohan's leg, the twins placing their hands on Kat's shoulders, and Oran grabbed Faile's hand automatically, making the girl blush, though she couldn't tell you why. Putting two fingers of one hand on his forehead, and reaching his other hand out to Videl, Gohan verbally prodded her, "Come on Videl, take my hand, unless you want to stay here." Fighting back a blush, Videl did just that, absently aware that Falcon took her other hand, and Hawk hers, but she focused on the feel of Gohan's hand surrounding hers; this almost distracted her to the point where she didn't notice the odd feeling as the world seemed to blur out of existence for a moment, as their surroundings shifted. Almost.

o-o-o

Videl gasped as she took in the area around her. Gone was the battle-scarred woodland clearing in the 438 Mountain Area, and in it's place, an ornate-looking tiled floor, at least a block in all directions, gardens with, of all things, palm trees, and towards one end, a palace looking like something out of a fairy tale; she would have been able to appreciate the view better if she didn't spot what could only be a black man - not African, but _actually_ black - in an odd outfit, approaching the group with, shock of shocks, a _green_ man.

"Gohan, what bring..." Dende cut off as he saw what the group was gathered around, wasting no more time on words as he ran forward, his hands glowing white, or possibly pale yellow, as he set them a little above Kaen's chest.

"Is he gonna be okay Dende?" Lime asked worriedly.

The Namekian teen smiled, "Yeah, he's gonna be okay. He'll probably be in pain for a few days, and will have a few more battle scars, but he'll be fine."

Videl, Hawk and Falcon continued to look at the green and black-skinned beings in shock, before Gohan laughed a little, scratching the back of his neck and saying, "Ah, right, I forgot you guys haven't been here before. Guys, this is Dende, and Mr. Popo. Dende, Mr. Popo, these are our friends Hawk, Falcon, and Videl. The little one over there is Faile" He pointed each person out in turn.

"Mr. Popo is happy to meet you all," the genie stated almost regally, clapping his hands together and bowing formally to them.

"It's nice to finally meet some of Gohan's other friends," Dende said from his position, a slight grin on his face as he added, "I'd shake your hands, but mine are a little busy right now."

The three kids stared intently at the hole in Kaen's chest, gaping slightly as they saw the flesh knit itself together again, until all that remained was three to four inch, angry looking scar. There was another similar scar on his face, from hairline to jaw, across his right eye, while most of the other minor cuts faded almost to nothing, until they were unrecognisable from the other hundred-odd scars on his body.

When Kaen sat up a moment later, he was immediately tackled back to the ground by the three kids, fighting back a wince as his little sister landed on his left side. "Hey guys, take it easy, I've just had a sword through my chest, and I'm still a little sore." Casting a critical eye over his brother, he said to Dende, "Hey D, think you could heal my brother while you're here. Seems he took a bit more damage than the others, and I for one don't feel like waiting for it to heal on it's own, and having to explain it to dad."

Gently prying the kids off him, and absently noticing that Faile and Oran were still holding hands, he turned to his mate, who stood there faux calmly, absently playing with the end of her tail. The corner of his mouth twitching, as if he was fighting the urge to smile, he asked, "So Pi, am I still pretty now?"

"You'll always be pretty," Pi replied, the same almost-grin on her face, "You just have an extra touch of 'bad-ass' now." Walking forward slowly, she drew him into a hug, making sure not to press herself against his left side. Carefully tracing the new line across his face, she whispered, "I thought I'd lost you for a minute there. I don't know what I'd do without you..."

"Go on a homicidal rampage and kill everything within seven light years?" Kaen offered with a cheeky smile.

She grinned back at him, "Yeah, probably."

Sobering up, he used his free hand to gently caress her face, like she was to him, before saying, "I'm not going anywhere. You know me koi, I'm too stubborn to die, and too in love with you to leave you behind." A massive blush stained her cheeks as she drew him in to a kiss, completely ignorant of the group of onlookers, but the onlookers sure noticed them.

--

"Wow, are they ever gonna come up for air?" Falcon asked no one in particular, gaping slightly at the couple that had been kissing for over five minutes straight, with no sign of stopping in sight.

"Do they even _need_ air?" Hawk asked, both mildly shocked and curious; he knew they were aliens, but not the specifics of their race.

"Not likely, and no, they can both hold their breath for a long time and breathe through their nose," Gohan supplied, turning away from the spectacle; it's not like he hadn't seen those two at it before.

--

A light blush staining her cheeks, the young redhead Faile turned away from the kissing couple, and turned her attention towards the dark haired boy sitting cross-legged before the green-skinned being called Dende. In particular, her mind turned to the situation that lead to the boy being where he was now; being healed by the current Guardian of Earth. "You're very lucky," she heard Dende say, "The damage is mostly superficial, but at least eighty percent of the skin on your back was torched, so it's not all going to go away; it will probably blend in with the rest of your training scars though. Still, like your brother you're gonna need to go easy for a few days until your natural regeneration kicks in, got it?"

"Yeah, I got it," Oran grumbled irritably, "But don't think I'm gonna let sis get ahead of me. If I need to, I..."

"Don't worry Dende," Faile piped up, drawing the demi-god's attention, "I'll make sure he takes it easy if I have to sit on him for a week." From the tone of her voice, it was more than obvious she'd do it if it came down to it, and probably enjoy it as well.

His eyes twinkling with mirth, but his voice serious, Dende replied, "I'll hold you to that if it comes down to it. Just make sure not to sit on his back, or press his chest too hard into the ground."

Smiling at him, she just nodded, and the teen moved off to see if the others needed healing. Faile's smile then turned on Oran, and the boy had to fight not to shift nervously under her scrutiny; despite the gentle, almost caring look on her face, she still appeared to be looking into his soul. As she slowly walked around him, examining the fresh scars on his back, he wouldn't have been surprised if she could give a full report on every injury he'd had in his nine year life.

Oran tried not to gasp as he felt a soft hand tracing the new lines on his back with surprising care, stirring up feelings he didn't even know he had. Her voice soft, Faile muttered, "You... you got these protecting me from that... what was it called?"

"A ki blast," he supplied, his tail swishing about absently.

"Right, a ki blast." She nodded, then continued, "Now, I may not have the best knowledge of these things, but I know that basically means you took a bullet for me." Oran opened his mouth, about to say something along the lines of 'it was nothing that serious' when she made one final statement; a question: "Why?"

This stumped the boy for a moment. In the end, all he could say in reply was, "You're... important to me. I didn't want to see you get hurt." She walked back in front of him, kneeling down to his level. He felt like he wanted to say something more, anything, but he never got the chance, as she placed one hand on his shoulder, leaned forward slightly, and kissed him.

As first kisses go, it was nothing earth-shattering, but it wasn't mediocre either, and given the events that had taken place earlier that day, it was enough to make the girl's toes curl, and the boy's tail to stand out straight. When they separated, it was a mere ten seconds later, but in keeping with the laws of relativity, felt closer to ten hours. It would have been perfect, were the moment not spoiled by the pair suddenly noticing all the eyes on them.

A massive grin on his newly scarred face, Kaen commented, "Damn, you two sure act fast don't you? Only met two days ago and you're already making out. I must admit I'm a little jealous Oran had his first kiss a whole year before I did."

Giggling slightly, Pi added, "Actually, if you swap their ages around, then it would be _exactly_ like our first kiss." Oran gulped as that information sunk in; he was nine, and Faile ten, while his niichan and neechan were ten and nine respectively when _they_ first kissed. Did this mean that Faile was destined to be his mate?

"You know what's the saddest fact of all?" Kat asked rhetorically, "That little Oran there got a girlfriend before Gohan." Now that got a laugh from all parties involved, excluding Gohan obviously, although Videl had a noticeable blush on her face.

--

"Alright, so what happens now?"

Gohan just shrugged, turning to reply to the speaker; Videl. "As I said before, we collect the dragon balls, and fix everything again."

"Don't bother," Pi commented, shocking the half-Saiyan teen for moment before she added, "We've already got access to a set, and we can leave Dende's set until they're needed. What we need is to work out exactly what we want the wishes to be, down to the word; we get three, so we need to think carefully."

"Well, the first is obviously to undo the damage Nijuushin caused," Kaen supplied, "And the second has to be to send him home to his own dimension. No one should be without their mate for eternity."

"What are we going to do with the third one then?" Kat asked.

"We wish away people's memories of this event; no one likes to remember dying," was Gohan's reply.

Nodding his head in the direction of Videl, Kaen asked, **"Even her?"**

Gohan sighed, replying, **"Yeah, her too. As much as I wish it were otherwise, she's not ready to be brought into our world yet."**

**"Besides,"** Pi added with a grin, **"We wouldn't want her to think you're a homicidal maniac would we?"**

Kaen just shrugged, **"Personally, I don't care if she knows or not, but if you don't want her to know, so be it. I see no need to wipe the minds' of the other three though, especially Faile."**

**"He's got a point."** Kat commented, **"I mean, they only know what they saw of the fight, and they're not likely to tell Videl if we ask them not to."**

**"So we're in agreement then?"** Kaen asked, looking at the other three for any sign of dispute, **"The three wishes are: repair the damage caused by Nijuushin; send Nijuushin back to his own universe to be with his mate, if possible; and erase this entire event from the memories of everyone not in the group, including Videl's knowledge of our alien background, right?"** The other three nodded, so Kaen closed his eyes, saying, "Alright then, we're in agreement; I'll contact Flute."

o-o-o

On a quiet planet in the far reaches of the galaxy, on a planet surrounded by three suns, on a pair of large, flat rocks situated beside a waterfall lagoon, sits a fairly ordinary-looking couple. Well, ordinary-looking to the other denizens of the planet, but to outsiders, they would look quiet strange, with their pointed ears, antenna, claws, and green skin. The two meditate quietly, as the yellow sun sets to the west of the green sky, heralding the rise of the red sun, but the moment is suddenly broken, not by a disaster of some sort, but by a voice neither have heard in ten years.

_"Hey guys!"_

Opening their eyes as the voice sounds in their minds, the male, Flute, is first to reply, _"Kaen, is that you?"_

The pair can almost see him grinning as he replies, _"One and the same. Don't 'spose I can get one of you to take over the link; my long-range telepathy skills still leave something to be desired."_ The stress is obvious in his mental voice, and the couple quickly take over control of the mental conversation; with the two sharing a permanent psychic link, it's quite easy for them to converse over that long a distance.

_"How are you guys settling in on Earth?"_ the female, Viola asked.

_"Eh, can't complain. It's a nice planet, and the natives are friendly enough for the most part."_ Kaen replied, with an almost visible shrug.

_"I take it this isn't a social call."_ Flute commented dryly.

A sigh preceded the reply. _"Unfortunately, no. I need a favour..."_

--

"What the hell is he doing?" Back on Earth - or rather, on a platform suspended a fair distance above Earth - one Videl Satan was almost back to normal after the earlier threat on her life, and that meant questioning everything around her.

"He's getting in contact with Flute, so he can use his dragon balls to set things right." Came Kat's simple reply.

"But how?" Videl prodded, growing irritated at being kept in the dark. "He's got no communication device; hell, he's not even saying anything! What, is he talking to him with his mind?"

"Exactly." Pi replied, grinning at the incredulous look on her face before adding, "Kaen and I have some minor telepathic ability, but not enough to hold a proper conversation, so he contacted Flute to get _him_ to take over. Think of it like making a long distance call, only to say 'call me back', and accepting the new call."

Clarity flooded Videl's face, before it clouded with question again, "Alright, that I understand, but what exactly do these 'dragon balls' do? You guys have never bothered to even say what they really are, just that they'll 'set everything right'."

Seeing no reason to keep her in the dark any more - given that she's not going to remember anyway - Gohan began, "Alright, it starts with an old legend..."

--

_"Is that all?"_ Flute commented, almost bored, _"With the power up our dragon balls were given, that should be no problem."_

_"Awesome. Thanks guys."_ Kaen replied, and again they could almost see his grin, before he asked, _"Wait, power up? What kind of power up?"_

This time, Viola was the one grinning as she said, _"Shenlong is the first dragon to be powered by the blood of both halves of our race."_

Before Kaen could question the Namekin woman about just what that entailed, Flute interrupted with, _"You're gonna need to tell us your wishes again, right down to the wording, so we don't mess it up."_

_"All right then,"_ Kaen replied good-naturedly, _"Just lemme know when you're ready for them."_

--

Kaen's eyes opened again, and he blinked a few times as they re-adapted to the light, before turning to the others and saying, "Right, we're good to go. Flute's just assembling his set. Apparently he's set up some kind of password for the seven of them to come racing back to him from wherever they are; pretty cool huh?"

"So he knows our wishes then?" Gohan asked, slightly nervous; he was, after all, the one there with the most experience with dragon ball wishes, and knew what could go wrong with them.

Kaen just shrugged, "Well, I told him, but he's gonna contact me again when he needs them, to make sure he's got them right..." He cut off abruptly as he felt a call in his mind, his right eyebrow raising as he muttered, "Wow, that was fast." This time, his eyes didn't close, instead settling into an unnerving far-away stare, as something happened he couldn't explain.

--

_"Okay, we're ready."_ Flute called telepathically, looking up at the towering form of his dragon; ever since the upgrade to the dragon balls, Shenlong's scales had become a brilliant gold, so they had jokingly dubbed it a 'Super Dragon'.

His reply came, but not in the form he expected, as Kaen seemed to shimmer into existence next to him. The two Namek's took a step back in shock, and even Kaen himself looked shocked to be there. Looking around, a stunned look on his face, he said, "Uh, am I on Namek?"

"Yes, you are." Flute replied, walking up to him and saying, "How did you get here?" He moved to place an arm on Kaen's shoulder, and was surprised to find it went right through him.

The look on Kaen's face almost matched the shock of his green-skinned friend as he muttered, "Uh... I guess I'm not..."

"Did... Did you just astral project?" Viola asked, somewhat familiar with this sort of thing.

"I... Don't... Know..."

Shaking himself from his stupor, Flute interrupted in his usual gruff manor, "Look, we can sort all this out later. Right now we need to get these wishes made before Shenlong gets impatient."

--

"Why are you telling me all this Gohan?"

"What do you mean Videl?" the teen replied, "You wanted to know, so I'm telling you..."

"Don't give me that crap!" Videl interrupted, her pigtails dancing as she swung her head from side to side. "You have done nothing but give me the run around since you started school, and now you're telling me whatever I want to know, just because I found out about your friend's secret? Unlikely." A metaphorical light bulb going on in her head, she muttered dazedly, "The third wish... I'm not going to remember any of this am I?" When her crush shook his head guiltily, she pleaded, "But why? I've been doing good so far haven't I?"

He smiled at her a little sadly, "Yes Videl, you have been doing well so far, but... You could be in shock from everything that's happened, or think you're dreaming; hell, you _could_ be ready, I don't know. You could also freak out in a couple of hours, and I'm afraid we can't take that chance." Putting his hands on either side of her head, forcing her to meet his gaze, he continued, "Look, I'm not going to lie to you; not now. I like you Videl, a lot, and I would love nothing more than to bring you into my world, but I don't think you're ready. Only when I'm sure you're convinced the world you live in is a stage can I begin to draw back the curtain. For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

Sniffling slightly as she fought tooth and nail to keep from crying, she said, "Well, before you... make my memory go away, can you answer two more questions for me?" When he nodded, she asked, "Are you an alien, like Kaen? I... I noticed your tail, and the language, and..."

"Shh," Gohan replied, putting a finger to her lips before continuing, "Yes and no. I'm not an alien, but I'm not human either; not completely anyway. Unlike Kaen, I was born on Earth, but my father wasn't. He came from the same planet Kaen did. My mother is human, however, making me the first hybrid between the human and Saiyan races, of which there are now three."

She sniffed again, wiping the water from her eyes before it could become tears, and when she asked her second question, Gohan was surprised not to be asked about the truth behind the Cell Games; instead, her question was, "What do you really think of me? Where do I stand in your mind?"

He smiled gently at her, slowly pulling her closer towards him until he had his arms wrapped around her in a hug, before replying, "I love you..." Not giving her time to reply, he pulled her into a kiss, and she let herself melt into his embrace, her eyes closing, and within a minute, she was asleep, held up by Gohan's arms alone.

"Damn man, that had to be one hell of a kiss," Hawk called out from his position nearby.

Shaking his head sadly, Gohan replied with a sigh, "No, just good timing; she fell asleep as a side-effect of the memory wipe. When she wakes up, she'll think that whatever she remembers - which won't be much - was a dream."

"What about us?" Falcon asked, "Are we going to forget too?"

"Nope," came Kaen's reply, as his eyes focused again, and he was again required to blink to fix his eyesight, "You guys get to remember today; I didn't think it was a problem. Besides, I don't want Oran losing his girlfriend just after he got her." The two kids in question began blushing heavily.

"So, everything has been taken care of then?" Pi asked her mate, who just nodded in reply.

With another sigh, Gohan carefully shifted the girl until he was holding her upright with a single arm, raising the other to his forehead and saying, "I'd better take her home. I just hope there's enough residual ki to find her room..." With a determined half-frown, he disappeared into thin air, using the Instant Transmission technique his father taught him, returning moments later to take the others back to the mountain district.

o-o-o

"So, this is the afterlife," A flame-haired figure sighed, closing his eyes as he felt an intense burning in them; he most certainly was _not_ crying! With his eyes closed, he didn't notice the scenery shift around him as he whispered, "After all I've been through, am I doomed to spend eternity in this dimension..."

A booming voice interrupted his musing; "YOU ARE THE SAIYAN KNOWN AS KAPSKAEN, CORRECT?" Looking up, he saw what could only be a red giant, in a purple pinstripe suit, sitting behind a desk. Stunned, he could only nod. The being looked down at the giant book in front of his, his eyes widening as they scan the contents before he continues, "YOU STAND CHARGED WITH OVER TEN THOUSAND COUNTS OF HOMICIDE, AND TWENTY-THREE COUNTS OF... SUICIDE?" His features cloud with confusion for a moment, but he continues on, "WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF?"

With a sigh, he closed his eyes, replying, "I have nothing to say in my defence. I did it, I regret it, and I am prepared to received my just punishment."

"NORMALLY I WOULD SEND YOU STRAIGHT TO HELL, TO ROT FOR ETERNITY. HOWEVER..." King Yemma's voice announced, and Kaen looked up when he paused, "HOWEVER, YOUR RECORD HAS BEEN MARKED AS 'FORGIVEN'."

"What does that mean?" A confused Kaen asked.

"What that means," a new voice interjected, a very female voice, and one he hadn't heard in far too long, "Is that you and I get to spend a lot more time together."

"Pi?" His eyes widened in shock as he turned to face the speaker, racing to embrace her as she nodded. Turning to the red giant, he stuttered, "How... why... what..."

Yemma just shook his head, "DO NOT ASK QUESTIONS TO WHICH YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE AN ANSWER."

Turning back to his mate, he opened his mouth to speak, possibly to justify his actions, but she silently quieted him with a single finger to his lips, quickly withdrawn as she kissed him, and simply whispered, "I understand." Hand in hand, the two moved off, to begin a new after life. Together.

o-o-o

Gohan sighed to himself as he dressed for school, the nightmare that was yesterday behind him. Despite how close his friend had come to death, Gohan couldn't help but be relieved that, for once, the great evil to arrive on Earth was _not_ after him or his father. Idly, he wondered just _how_ Kaen was going to explain away those new scars of his to his parents. 'Ah well, not my problem,' he thought to himself, 'at least now, life can get back to normal.'

Going down to breakfast, he was a little surprised to find his mother all dressed up. Kissing her on the cheek as he sat down, he commented, "Good morning kaasan. You look very nice today; you going somewhere?"

Setting the last of his food down on the table, she replied, "Yes, I was invited to come into the city today." She was being decidedly vague, but even Gohan's super-intellect didn't pick up on it, because: a) it was early; and b) he was a Saiyan, and there was food in his direct line of sight. All other thought became secondary as he consumed his meal, and by the time he had left for school, it had left his mind entirely; a pity, as he had no idea just how far from normal the day would be.

o-o-o

"So Videl, where were you yesterday?"

Gohan tensed up as the bubbly blonde asked her friend that, but his fears were unfounded as the raven haired girl replied, "Honestly, I'm not sure. Maybe I had a fever or something, coz I woke up around two. I had the strangest dream too..."

"Really? What about?"

All in viewing range could have almost sworn a light blush covered Videl's face, but it quickly passed as she replied, "Nothing; forget it."

Erasa was about to pump her friend for information when she was interrupted by the door swinging open, slamming harshly into the plasterboard wall, and drawing the attention of the entire class. Announcement made, in walked the flame-haired Kaen, dressed almost casually in loose black pants and a red singlet, followed by his girlfriend and sister. What drew everyone's attention, however, weren't his chiselled arms; well, that helped, but that wasn't the main focus. No, the main focus was the obvious white bandage wrapped around the left side of his chest.

When he turned to face the class, half of the assembled students gasped, and almost all of the girls swooned, for across his face, from hairline to jaw over his right eye, was a fresh, and fairly deep, red scar. Glaring up at them, and inwardly cursing the girls' reaction, he growled, "What?"

One smartass jock decided to call out, "What happened? Did you cut yourself shaving?"

A fake confused look on his face, Kaen replied, "Did you say something? I'm sorry, I don't speak 'retard'." When the laughter from the class died down, as well as the occasional jeer of 'Burn!', he added, "As you maggots will no doubt badger me all day about this, I will say it once, and you can pass it along. I got this scar in a sword fight, protecting my girl from some bastard that was trying to kill her."

"What did the other guy walk away with?" Another faceless drone.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop a few degrees as Kaen grinned maliciously, walking up to his desk with one final comment; "Who said he walked away?"

o-o-o

Gohan started going through some light stretches; it was PE, the last class of the day, and they were still doing martial arts. Around him, he could hear whispers of some guest they were going to have, which had apparently been announced yesterday. 'Typical,' he mused, 'I miss one day, and the world implodes...' Absently, he realised how much he sounded like Kaen, or Vegeta, when he said that, but the thought passed quickly.

His thoughts were interrupted by their teacher, Mr. Jones, walking out of the school building, clipboard in hand, and raising his hands up for quiet. "Now that I have your attention, I have a special announcement," he declared, waiting for full attention before continuing, "You all remember I made mention last week about possibly bringing in a guest tutor, hopefully a former entrant into the Tenkaichi Budokai, and, as I said yesterday, we finally found one, who agreed to be here today." As the murmurs rippled through the class, two different people were thinking two very similar trains of thought.

'Please don't let it be dad. Please, Kami, I beg you, let it be someone else...'

'Dende, if this is Hercule, I will personally rip your intestines out and feed them to you! Anyone else and you're okay, but so help me...'

"Our special guest competed in the twenty-third Budokai, before the current test system was introduced, back when the preliminary matches consisted of an elimination-style free-for-all..."

'Phew,' Gohan thought to himself, 'they must've invited Krillin, or maybe Tien; I doubt Piccolo would agree to this...'

"After passing many a gruelling test, she made it as far as the quarter finals, where she was eliminated by the man who went on to win that tournament..."

'Quarter finals?' Gohan mused, before another key piece of information clicked into place, 'Wait... SHE? Oh no...'

"Kids, make welcome... Son Chi-Chi."

As the woman named stepped out of the building, dressed now in a more relaxed fighting outfit reminiscent of the old days, one word could be heard over the applause of the students; "KAASAN?"

"Oh hello sweetie," Chichi remarked, waving almost cheekily at Gohan, "I didn't know I'd be teaching your class."

Dropping to the ground, he muttered under his breath, "Please, kill me now..."

_"Is that a request?"_ A voice echoed in his head, that of Earth's resident demi-god; at the growl of a reply, the voice added, _"Hey, I do believe you said anyone other than Hercule was okay, and she counts as someone else. Be more specific next time..."_

"Wow Gohan, your mom made it as far as the quarter finals?" The easily excited Erasa cried, "That is so cool!"

Recovering from her shock, Videl marched over to Gohan, yanking him off the ground until they were at the same eye-level as she growled, "Son Gohan, why didn't you tell me your mother was not only a fighter, but the woman I admire as the _only_ woman to _ever_ make it into the Budokai arena?"

"Uh... It never came up?" Gohan reply sounded pathetic even to his ears; the laughter he could hear in the background from his supposed 'friends' didn't help any. As Videl started grilling him, again, Gohan couldn't help but smile; in the end, it seemed life had, in fact, returned to normal. For now...

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

We're on the home straight now, just three more episodes... I mean, chapters, to go. For those who don't know, koi is short for koibito, which means 'lover'. Basically, calling someone 'koi' is the same as saying 'my love'.

Now then, I feel my must reply to ten.noitcifnaf's monstrous review. You ask why I designed justifications in my notes if I wasn't using them to defend myself? Simple: to get people to react :D I'm an attention whore, and make no claims otherwise. You'll notice I said I _could_ justify/give reasons for my actions, but I never said I was using them. It wasn't in Gohan's character to be a spectator, but I couldn't find a graceful way of keeping him as such, so...

I'd like to think my next story _will_ be better written than this one, but the fact is, writing was never my strength. I mean, as I think I might have mentioned before, at high school, English was my _weakest _subject. On top of that, the next story will be written differently from this one, as will be explained in the final chapter of When World's Collide. I do, however, look forward to helpful reviews from you, and all my reader, when I start posting it.


	31. The Butterfly Effect

--- When Worlds Collide: Omake ---

Interlude the Third - The Butterfly Effect

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Note: There will definitely not be an Interlude the Fourth

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It is said that such a tiny, insignificant event such as a butterfly flapping its wings, can cause so monumental an effect as a cyclone half a world away. If this is true, what effect might a monumental event have? A scant two-and-a-bit weeks ago in the Multiverse, a Saiyan known as Kaen sought to undo an event in his own dimension, and in doing so, unwittingly wound up travelling to a _different_ dimension.

There, in anger at his failure, he lashed out violently at that dimension's version of himself, and started a chain of destruction that threatened the very fabric of the Multiverse itself. Hopping from universe to universe, he slew countless masses in his search for his dimensional copies, gaining their strength and knowledge, until, mere hours ago, he met his match, and was destroyed.

This, alone, was a monumental event that left a devastating scar across the Multiverse, but the chain didn't stop there. With one poorly phrased wish, to a being with powers so great even it's creators could not comprehend it's true strength, the Multiverse was again struck by the flapping of another butterfly's wings; this time, not to destroy, but to restore.

"I wish for the damage done by the being calling himself Nijuushin to be undone!"

"YOUR WISH HAS BEEN GRANTED!"

o-o-o

Dark eyes cast about the scenery in confusion. The scars of battle were obvious, but they looked at least a week old, if not more. How was that possible? They'd only gotten the mission a day or two ago, and had only been here for a few hours, hadn't they? The eyes shot open suddenly as that thought hit, quickly casting around the scene again, before coming to rest of visage of a dark-haired girl to his left, picking herself up off the ground.

Dusting herself off, she too looked around the area, seemingly just as confused as him. "Kaen?" she asked warily.

"Yeah?"

Turning to face him, she asked, "Did... Did we die?"

A sudden flash of memories hit him, "I... I guess we did."

"But we're alive now?"

He shrugged, "Looks that way."

"How?"

He shrugged again, walking forward to wrap his arms around her, "I don't know. But we can figure it out together."

Snuggling into his chest, she mused, "We should probably report in..."

He barked a laugh, "Yeah, probably." Pressing the button on the side of his scouter, he said, "Control? Come in Control. This is team Kilo-Alpha reporting in."

The radio crackled for a minute before the response came, "Kilo-Alpha? Kilo-Alpha has been reported KIA."

Kaen sighed, "Yeah, about that..."

o-o-o

The battle was not going well. The royal forces had found out that the rebel leader had fallen in battle about a week ago, and had besieged the rebel base ever since. Though new to the position, they're current leader Watmel had managed to prevent the royal armies breaking through until now, but supplies were running low. With a heavy heart, he walked slowly to the command console, preparing to call the surrender.

"Sir, we have incoming!"

Turning to the sergeant who'd spoken, he replied tiredly, "Son, we've had incoming for the past week."

Shaking his head, the man replied, "No sir, it's one of ours! No, two!"

"What!" Sprinting over to the man's console, he muttered, "That's impossible... Everyone's been accounted for."

"On screen now sir," another reported.

Turning to face the screen, disbelief bloomed on the faces of those present. "Impossible..." he breathed, "They're dead..."

Dead or not, the viewscreen clearly showed their former leader, and his mate, tearing a bloody path through the forces surrounding the base. More frightening still was that instead of the black hair they expected of the pair, they could clearly see golden hair instead. Within minutes, the enemy had been routed, fleeing back to the castle, and the rebels wasted no time in opening the door for their newly returned leader.

"Sir!" All assembled gave the pair a crisp salute as they entered. "We thought you were dead," Watmel commented, speaking for all those assembled.

Kaen just laughed heartily, "We were, but now we're back. Come, to the castle; we must press the advantage while they're weak!" With a cheer, the rebel army followed their returned leader out, and the tide of the civil war turned that day, for the better.

o-o-o

He paced slowly, under the watchful eye of his mate, as he tried to reason out just what the hell had happened. They had been killed; that much he knew for a fact, as both of them remembered the after-life. Now, for reasons unknown, they were alive again, back on the planet they'd been on when all of this started. To make matters more confusing, their ship was still there, despite the fact he remembered seeing - and feeling - it explode.

He paused, massaging his temples, "It just doesn't make sense..."

Breaking out of her own introspection, she commented, "Wait, if we died, doesn't that mean they won't be looking for us anymore?"

Looking over at her as if this fact had only just occurred to him, he mused, "It might, but that assumes they found out that we'd been killed; after all, we have no proof that the guy who killed us was a Cold agent." If he _was_, it didn't bode well to think the Cold Empire might have cloning technology.

"Well, let's say he wasn't," Pi reasoned, "The extermination squad that came for us would have scoured the planet, and come up empty handed, right?" She paused, waiting for him to nod, before continuing, "Having not found us, they would have reported back to their leaders that the trail had run cold, right?"

He grinned, realisation hitting him, "Which means they would have absolutely no idea where we are."

She grinned back, "Exactly! Now, we just need to find a place we can lay low while we train, and then, payback time!" Still smiling, the two sat down to work out where, exactly, they could go to train while continuing to avoid the eye of the Cold Empire.

o-o-o

He smiled to himself, watching the two kids playing in the woods nearby. Roughly a week and a half ago, in the standard calendar, there had been a minor... mishap, during one of his experiments, turning his eldest son into a boy again, the same boy he watched now. However, mere hours later, he and his mate had disappeared, leaving no trace. And then, just yesterday, they had appeared again, with no explanation as to where they'd been in the meantime. The pair acted as if nothing had happened, even asking if he'd found a way to reverse what he's done to his son. When he replied he hadn't, she surprised him by asking if he could return _her_ to that age too; a simple enough process.

That lead him back to now, watching his son Kaen, and his mate Pi, playing in the woods like they did when they were younger; well, technically, they _were_ younger again. He was dreading having to explain it to her parents, or even to his _own_ mate; he doubted she'd forgive him for making her wait another twenty standard years for grandchildren.

Avarrdo just grinned to himself; ah well, he'd worry about that later. Kaen and Pi were happy, and that was all that mattered.

o-o-o

The steady beat of feet and hooves on packed dirt drew the attention of many an eye, most watching in awe as the red-clad soldiers marched or rode past. Some, however, watched with a healthy dose of fear, as, by all reports, the army they saw before they was slain in it's entirety during the massacre at Chi Bi, in which the entirety of the Kakarott, Vegeta, and Avarrdo families were believed to have died. Now, it seemed, the third of these was indeed alive and well.

In the power void created upon the deaths of the three ruling families of the realm, there had been one man all too prepared to take over; a man named Yuan Shao. He'd already had an army ready and prepared for war, seemingly ready to attempt conquest of one or more of the kingdoms. With all three ruling families dead, and most of their armies slain, that had been a simple enough task.

The army stopped abruptly, staring down the beige-clad army barring their way. A man, who appeared to be superior in rank, walked forward through the beige throng to address them. "You are trespassing on the lands of Yuan Shao. Turn back now, or you will be dealt with accordingly."

The sound of hooves rang loud through the ensuing silence, as a pair of warhorses, one midnight black, the other smoke grey, walked forward calmly. Stopping between the two armies, the man on the black horse, dressed in burnished red plate, called, "I am Kaen, of the kingdom of Avarrdo. It is you and your lord that are trespassing on _your_ land. Leave, now, or we will not hesitate to slay you all where you stand."

By an odd twist of irony, the first kingdom Yuan Shao took control of was the Avarrdo kingdom, and with it's denizens among the land of the living again, they had come to claim it. The assembled soldiers took one look at the assembled army, the army believed to have been slain, and ran for their lives, screaming all the way; if they could defeat death, there was no stopping them, and the men weren't going to lay down their lives for nothing.

Kaen paused a moment to smirk at the lone officer, before the army continued it's march. When they reached the castle, however, beige-clad soldiers bared their way once more, though these had a mite more guts than the ones before. Wheeling his horse in front of the assembled Avarrdo kingdom soldiers, Kaen announced, "I will allow no more of my fellow men to die needlessly. I will ride in alone."

"I think not!" A powerful voice announced. Following the voice was a red horse, and atop it a man with muscles on muscles. "I will ride with you."

Kaen opened his mouth to protest, but the glare from the man stopped him. Instead, he replied, "I would be honoured, Gohan, to have you by my side."

"Where my husband goes, I go." Another voice announced; Videl.

"And you, husband, are not going anywhere without me," his own wife supplied. That decided, the four headed into the castle, before anyone else could volunteer, and together, they took back their land.

o-o-o

The man on the dais sighed, as the last petitioner filed out. Relaxing back onto the throne, he ran a hand across the blue glass-like carapace on his head; were he not an Aisu-Jin, and thus bald, you could say he was running a hand through his hair. In the week since the emperor had disappeared, presumed dead, Frost had done his best to keep the Empire running smoothly, but it was hard work, especially considering they had hidden the fact of Kaen and Pi's disappearance from the public.

"Aw man," he whined to himself, "How did Kaen manage this?"

"By taking so many days off." A remarkably familiar voice declared.

Spinning around, Frost found himself face to face with the missing emperor himself, grinning at him, with his mate by his side. "Sire! You're alive!" He exclaimed.

"Last I checked," the flame-haired ruler grinned.

"Where are the kids? Are they alright?" Pi asked worriedly.

"Don't worry," Frost reassured calmly, "They're fine. After you two disappeared, they dedicated themselves to their study so they could take over. They're in the study right now." Pi raced off before he could say another word. Turning to Kaen, he asked, "So, where _were_ you two anyway?"

Kaen just grinned again, "Well, have I got a story for you..."

o-o-o

She sat up slowly, casting her eyes around the street, but found the area in her line of vision deserted. Standing up quickly, she scanned the area, searching for him. 'Please,' she begged, 'Please be here...' She hadn't seen him at all in the after life, and when she was told she was being returned to life, she'd waited as long as possible, to see if he was going back; she didn't want to stay in the after life if he wasn't there, but didn't want to return to life if he was going to stay dead. Now it seemed as though she'd made the wrong choice... She felt the tears forming in her eyes at the thought.

"Oh, there you are." She spun around, seeing the man she was searching for, carrying a pile of familiar packages. "I was wondering when you were coming back. I got back maybe... ten minutes ago, or something, and I realised you'd be pissed if your shopping wasn't here when you got back."

"Kaen?" she asked, sounding on the verge of tears, "About... about what happened before..."

He just smiled warmly, "Don't worry Pi, I understand; you were just trying to toughen me up."

Sniffling a little, she said, "I... I didn't see you while we were..."

He shuffled his feet nervously, "Yeah, um, about that..." Smiling a little nervously, he continued, "I... I don't want you to think I was avoiding you or anything... I just... needed time to sort myself out."

Sniffling again, the first tears started leaking from her eyes. In a sudden burst of speed she darted forward, and he closed his eyes, expecting pain of some sort, but it never came. Instead, she buried her face into his chest, unwittingly collapsing the carefully stacked pile of packages. Choking back sobs, she whispered, "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." over and over again.

Shocked, and unprepared for this sort of reaction, he just carefully placed his arms around her, giving her the support she needed, and whispered back, "It's alright. I forgive you." Feeling a bit more confident she wasn't about to inflict bodily harm on his person, he used one hand to stroke her hair, trying to memorise the feel of her against him, lest this turn out to be one of his dreams.

Not daring to look him in the eyes, Pi whispered softly, "I love you Kaen. I don't expect you to feel the same way, but..."

Summoning all his courage, he placed his hand under her chin, gently pushing her head back so he could look into her eyes. Smiling at her, he just replied, "I love you too." Before she could reply, leant in and kissed her, and she melted into his embrace. Neither of them kidded themselves into believing life would be easy from now on, but they each decided to themselves that, no matter what happened, they would face it together.

--

In an almost pitch-black room, three men were assembled around a desk, observing the goings-on on the street on the small screen on one corner. One of them, slouched across the opposite corner of the desk grinned broadly, cheerily announcing, "It's about time those two got together. It was almost getting to the point where I thought _I_ would settle down first."

The second, seated behind the desk, just folded his hands in front of his face, smiling thinly behind them. "It's all going according to the scenario."

"What scenario?" The third asked, standing behind the second's shoulder. "In case you haven't realised, the pair of them died and came back."

"This has been accounted for in the scenario."

The other man groaned, "You're an idiot. And for god's sake, would you shave? That chin-fro of yours makes you look like a twit."

o-o-o

He opened his eyes slowly, taking in the unfamiliar scenery. Groaning, he muttered to himself, "Where am I?"

"You're in the hospital Kaen," a familiar voice replied, "You and Pi were found unconscious in the remains of the concert hall a few hours ago."

Looking over at the voice, he blinked a bit, trying to focus his vision, trying to convince himself the person he saw was who he thought she was. Seeing the image wasn't changing, he asked tentatively, "Mum?"

She smiled, "Ah, so you _do_ remember your old mother. I guess your father was wrong, thinking your fame would cause you to forget your roots."

"What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too," she replied wanly, before turning serious, "We heard the news about what happened to the concert hall, and that people didn't know if you too were alive or not, so we rushed over to help with the search."

He looked at her incredulously, "_Dad_ helped? Yeah, right; he'd probably be glad to see me gone..."

"Don't talk like that!" She exclaimed angrily, before calming down and adding, "Look, I know we didn't really... agree, about your chosen vocation, your father especially, but we still love you."

Sighing, Kaen asked, "So, everyone's here?"

April smiled again, "Actually, the twins were _already_ here." When his face twisted into a confused mask, she supplied, "They're massive fans of your music - they own all your albums - and they spent no less than a month begging and pleading for permission to attend the concert, just so they could see you again." She smiled fondly at the memory, "They were on cloud nine for ages when we finally gave in, and that continued even after he incident. They were convinced the 'attack' was just some kind of publicity stunt." Curious, she asked, "So, what _did_ happen?"

He was cut off from answering by twin cries of "Brother!" which was followed quickly by two pint-sized bodies impacting with his chest. Looking back at his mother, as the twins babbled about how much they missed him, and how awesome his music was, he just mouthed, 'It doesn't matter.'

o-o-o

"Pi? Pi, are you alright?"

She smiled over at her mate, "I'm fine, don't worry."

Still concerned, he asked, or attempted to at least, "Are the- I mean, are-"

She nodded, placing a hand protectively over her stomach. "Don't worry, they're fine too."

He sighed, smiling back at her, but before he could say anything, the pair heard a pair of cries: one "Momma!" and one "Daddy!" Turning to face the voices, they noticed a pair of blurs racing into the lab, attaching themselves to their legs, and revealing themselves to be a pair of children; _their_ children.

Carefully detaching the boy from his leg, he knelt down, wrapping his arms around the boy; Pi would have done the same, were she able to kneel, so, instead, she pulled the girl into her arms as she sat down, ironically onto the chair she'd been killed in. "Hey there little man," Kaen whispered, "How are you?"

"They missed you," He heard a voice comment, belonging to his older brother Korin, "They've never had to be a day without you, so they were a little upset, but dad got them settled in until we could work out what happened." Curious, he asked, "What did happen anyway?"

Kaen shook his head, "It doesn't matter, and I'd rather not talk about it in front of the kids." Turning to his brother, and making sure the kids couldn't see, he mouthed, 'We were attacked.'

Before Korin could reply, Pi interjected, "Speaking of kids, I think you've got a few more that want to meet you." As the two men turned towards her, she added, "I think it's time."

Smiling, Kaen released his first born, and after carefully extracting his second born (by minutes) onto the ground, he carefully picked his mate up, carrying her off to the delivery room they'd had installed the _first_ time she'd given birth, to welcome his newest children into the world he had almost been ripped from.

o-o-o

With one simple, if poorly phrased, wish, change echoed once again across the Multiverse, repairing the damage done by one man. Not everyone chose to return to life, of course. For many, their happiness lay with their family on the other side, while for others, their life continued on as it had before their untimely death, as if nothing untoward had happened. There was one fact, however, that was true for all involved; they each found their 'happily ever after'.

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Obviously, I didn't cover _all_ of the alternate universes in here; after all, compiling all the content from them together, I got a file three times as large as my largest chapter. I just covered the ones that I felt a follow-up was important for.

Just two more to go in this series. Bit of a late update today. I got the new DBZ PS2 game recently, so... Been a little distracted.

Oh, and Videl161, of course Gohan and Videl are gonna get together. Just gotta mess around with her life a bit mroe first :D


	32. A Not So Friendly Spar

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 29 - A Not-so Friendly spar

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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As he walked up the stairwell, his destination the school's roof, Gohan couldn't shake the feeling of foreboding that swept across him. It wasn't the 'the world is going to end in a week' kind of foreboding, but more the 'something is going to happen soon that you are not going to like' kind; the kind that made his life hell, but left him alive to 'enjoy' it. He just wished he could work out what it was; he knew there was very little chance he could stop it from happening completely, but if he knew what it would be, he could begin damage control immediately

It was Thursday, lunch time to be exact, three days after his friend-cross-rival Kaen had survived the vicious attack from his inter-dimensional self - ironically, the only Thursday of school thus far that said friend had seen through to at least lunch time - and so far today Kaen had said a total of two sentences to him: "Get ready for our match today. It'll be a blast, I guarantee it." Gohan's mind had been running all day, working out possible reasons he'd need to do anything different today from any other day, and all of them had given him reason to worry. Which brought him to now.

Stepping out onto the roof, and setting his bag down next to the stairwell entrance, he noticed his opponent for the day at the edge of the roof, his back to the door, but his appearance caused Gohan's mind to race again; Kaen was wearing a black spandex combat suit, along with black boots and fingerless gloves, covered by a set of red torso armour, the colour of which matched his hair. In short, Kaen was dressed in his Phoenix gear.

"Well, well, well, you're finally here," Kaen chuckled to himself, "For a minute there I thought I might have to drag you out here by the tail."

"What's going on?" Gohan asked, careful not to use any names in case anyone was listening. Again.

"It's quite simple really," Kaen replied, shrugging his shoulders; he still hadn't turned around to face him. "My mate and I are taking the next month off to train, as we intend to compete in the upcoming Tenkaichi Budokai, and _you_ will be there."

"Will I now?" Gohan asked semi-jokingly, "And when, pray tell, did I decide this?"

"You decided this when you found out that, in the tournament, I will be using my _full_ strength, and the only way for you to find out exactly how strong I am is to compete," Kaen replied with another shrug, adding, "And don't think you can just attend and find out; I'm hardly going to use my full strength without an opponent, namely you, worth fighting."

"Alright then, I'll be there," Gohan replied seriously, "I might have to convince kaasan to let me enter, but she'll give in eventually." Kaen nodded, like he'd already expected that answer, so Gohan added, "Be that as it may, why are you all dressed up today?"

"That too is quite simple, Saiyaman." Now, Kaen did turn around, and despite the number of evil tyrants he'd stood his ground against in his life, Gohan still felt a shiver run down his spine as Kaen's imposing visage made itself known, the scar across his eye making him look all the more intense. "Today will be the last time we meet in combat, if at all, until the tournament itself, so I figured we ought to make it special. Consider today an appetiser."

"You want to go all out? Here? Do you know how much of the city we'll destroy?" Gohan asked incredulously.

"You don't have to fight, but that won't stop me, so I suggest you change." Kaen replied, grinning darkly, "The way I see things, there are two possible outcomes here: either the public see Saiyaman and Phoenix locked in combat, or they see Phoenix beating up Saiyaman's secret identity. Make your choice." Gohan felt his blood singing for combat, so he made the only choice a true Saiyan could have; he pressed the button on his watch, switching his school clothes for his Saiyaman outfit. He heard 'Phoenix' comment, "You have chosen wisely..." before he felt a fist slam into his chest, and he was sent rocketing backwards over the city.

--

The students of Orange Star High, all of which were currently in the grounds spread out around the school, all looked up as one as what sounded like a sonic boom echoed across the area, emanating from, by the sound of things, the school building. Only those on the west side of the school saw the source, however, as a streak of black and green could be seen speeding off from the roof of the building, followed closely by a streak of black and red. One such student was none other than the city's resident hero Videl Satan.

Unlike most students, Videl instantly caught on to just what those streaks of light could be; ignoring the fact that both were in the air, and thus obviously flying, by colours alone they could only be Saiyaman and that Phoenix she'd heard about. She'd always suspected that the pair were students of Orange Star, Saiyaman especially, and now she had proof; vaguely, she thought she should have known more on the subject, but nothing came. Shrugging it off, Videl gave chase, bringing her capsule copter out as soon as it was safe. This was a golden opportunity, one she didn't plan to miss.

--

Saiyaman quickly gathered his energy, trying to break himself from his uncontrolled backwards flight. He'd really been caught off guard, not just with the strength Phoenix's punch packed, but by his speed, and the speed at which he powered up; one second Kaen was at his normal low power level - or at least, low compared to Gohan himself - and the next, his power had jumped to over half of Gohan's maximum in his normal form. 'From what Kaen had shown thus far through our sparring sessions, his current level shouldn't be far from his maximum,' Gohan mused to himself, managing to take control over his flight, 'Unless he's been holding back more than I could sense.'

A sharp warning in the back of his mind was all the notice he had about the incoming attack, but it was all he needed. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he blocked the incoming sub-sonic punch, grabbing his opponent's arm and using the momentum to throw up over his shoulder, spinning himself upright afterwards to face the expected retaliatory attack; he could sense Kaen right himself against one of the nearby buildings, launching himself back into the fray, where the two locked up, their arms straining to keep the other away, but a grin on both of their faces.

"You've been holding back on me Phoenix," Saiyaman jibbed good-naturedly.

"I hold back on everybody; why should you be special?" Phoenix jibbed back. Saiyaman's reply, assuming there was one, was cut off as the two jumped back, Phoenix lashing out with a kick, that was intercepted by his opponent's forearm, then retaliated against with a lunging punch. Diving out of the way, Phoenix 'planted' his hands of a space of air as though it were solid, lashing out with a mule kick, but Saiyaman spun to the side, kneeing him in the gut and sending him flying a few metres.

'Landing' on his feet, Phoenix spun around with a kick to his opponent's midsection, which said opponent quickly jumped over, but before he could get too far Phoenix caught hold the one weakness in the costume's design he'd forgotten; the cape. Spinning around rapidly, the cape snapped off as he launched his opponent towards one of the nearby buildings, firing a blast after him to make sure he had enough propulsion to reach it. The blast exploded at the top of a ballistic-like arc, sending Saiyaman careening uncontrollably towards the wall of the building; or, more accurately, the Hercule billboard bolted to the side of the building.

With a loud crash, Saiyaman broke cleanly through the billboard, and the brick wall behind, coming to rest in the living room of the apartment behind. Spinning to land on his feet, he drew his hands to his right side, charged a blast, and fired back through the wall, and the billboard, the blue Kamehameha intercepting the red blast of his opponent. The two cut the beams simultaneously, and before blasting back into action Saiyaman calmly turned to the occupants of the house, commenting in his mock-deep voice, "Move along citizens, nothing to see here." As the fight carried on deeper into the city, Saiyaman failed to notice the mark left behind: one Hercule billboard, now missing a few teeth, and having a massive hole in his forehead.

o-o-o

Videl watched intently from the cockpit of her hovering copter, the recently collected red cape of Saiyaman sitting behind her seat, not daring to blink as the battle raged across the skies of Satan City. For once she was thankful for the wealth her father had, and the things that wealth brought in, because of the state-of-the-art video camera he'd given her, one that wasn't available in the standard market, and one that she was currently using to record the fight before her.

Said fight had degenerated to what appeared to be two lights dancing around the sky, causing flashes of light and shockwaves whenever they met, but Videl dared not try to zoom in and catch sight of the fighters; by the time the camera had gotten even half-way in, the lights had danced off again. She _did_ get one good shot however, when the pair had been locked up in a power struggle, so it was definitely Phoenix and Saiyaman; she'd seen the former throw the latter into a building.

Videl was willing to admit, even if only to herself, that the pair of them were far stronger than her; after all, Phoenix had thrown Saiyaman through a billboard at long range, while she would have had trouble breaking it at close range (her father always did want his billboards to stand forever...), and, given the damage she'd seen happen to the surrounding area whenever the two 'dancing lights' collided, she knew the concussive shockwave must have been immense.

Normally, Videl would have been annoyed, or even angry, about the damage the two were doing to the city, but right now, she was too caught up in the moment. What she had seen of the fighting was simply amazing; the skill with which they both fought was almost unparalleled, to the point that she doubted even her father was that good. 'Then again,' she mused to herself, 'after seeing these two do what they do, I'm finding it harder and harder to believe that Poppa's the best in the world.' She returned her attention to the fight as the two lights stopped dancing once again.

o-o-o

'He's good. He's very good...' Gohan admitted to himself, as he and 'Phoenix' duked it out again. To Gohan's critical eye, honed from years of training with Piccolo, he could see the vast amount of skill Kaen had; now above all other times, just like he'd told Goten about two weeks earlier, he could see that, in skill alone, Kaen was his superior, and at the same power level, Kaen would win.

There was something odd about his style though; on the one hand, there was a tightly honed style reminiscent of Vegeta, naming it a wholly Saiyan style, and on the other, there was a mish-mash of other styles. If Gohan hadn't known better, he would have sworn Kaen had been training for longer than he'd been alive; if Gohan hadn't known that Kaen was twenty, he would have sworn that Kaen had been training for sixty plus years.

Suddenly, Gohan's critical mind spotted an opening, the tiniest of mistakes on Kaen's part. Grabbing his opponent's fist, he pulled him forward, throwing his other arm forward to crash into Phoenix's chest as he released the arm again, and sending him flying backwards. Giving chase, 'Saiyaman' phased above him, utilizing the most powerful weapon known to man: the Son Headbutt.

--

There was a calm, almost lazy air permeating through the building. A young redhead lay on her stomach on the bar, kicking her legs absently as she wrote in the book in front of her, under the watchful eye of a greying older man, the kind of man who could be anyone's father or uncle, absently cleaning a glass. Another redhead, older this time, sat at a table nearby with a brown-haired guy, chatting quietly as the two watched a fairly heavyset guy, and a fairly scrawny guy, cleaning the large room.

The peace in Club Chaos was rudely interrupted by a loud crash, followed by part of the ceiling caving in, which was then followed by a black-clad figure slamming roughly into the floor, but if any of them were surprised, they hid it well; not even the young redhead jumped. In fact one of the only reactions at all to the newcomer was the heavyset man, known to his friends as Oz, whining, "Aw man, I just cleaned there..."

The sixty-odd man behind the bar, without looking up, just commented, "That's going on your tab Phoenix."

The black-clad figure just stood up, wiping plaster dust off his clothes, and muttering, "Yeah whatever, I'll fix it later Vulture."

As he started to float into the air again, the older redhead asked, "Hey Phoenix, you're still coming 'round tomorrow right?" He just nodded, a red aura erupting around him as he sped out of the hole again.

Turning away from her schoolwork for a minute, Faile asked, "Hey sis, why are Phoenix and Saiyaman fighting?"

The older girl just grinned, replying, "Do you know anyone else strong enough for either of them to spar against?" Satisfied with the answer, the young girl just returned to her work, and life returned to normal.

--

As he blasted back out of the club roof, Kaen took quick stock of the situation, seeing Gohan just floating calmly maybe fifteen metres away, and another Hercule billboard a ways to his (Gohan's) left, this one apparently mechanised. Throwing his arms back, he formed a ki ball in each hand, fusing them together and firing his signature attack: Inferno Blast; the ensuing flash of light hid the smirk on Kaen's face.

Waiting until the attack almost hit, Gohan slapped it away, watching it amusedly as it sailed towards the Hercule billboard nearby; this one had a picture of Hercule giving his cheesy grin, with a mechanised 'hand' swinging from side to side, giving that annoying victory sign he overused. He had to fight back a grin as Kaen's blast destroyed the index finger of the moving hand, so it looked, for all intensive purposes, like Hercule was giving everyone the finger. The lapse in concentration cost him however, as the impact with his stomach proved.

The red light of the beam had hid Kaen's approach, as he sped towards Gohan's stationary form. Driving his shoulder into 'Saiyaman's' gut, he grabbed his opponent, increasing his speed as he pushed Saiyaman backwards, fully intent on driving him bodily into something. With a grin, he noticed a very suitable something rapidly approach.

o-o-o

Over by city hall, a press conference was in full swing, and at the centre of that media circus was the ringmaster himself, one Hercule Satan, eating up all the spectacle. The subject of the day: the resident superheroes of Satan City. Standing up on the podium, Hercule bellowed, in his usual fashion, "These so called 'heroes' are nothing but tricksters and frauds. Why else would they hide who they are from the public eye?"

One brave reporter stood up, questioning the 'saviour of the world's logic by asking, "Mr. Satan, what then do you make of the fire at the sports emporium? The fire department couldn't get the blaze under control, and by all reports, without Saiyaman and Phoenix's help, nine children would have died in the inferno."

"Well, they probably set up the fire themselves so they could make out like they were heroes," the afro'd blowhard replied, "From what I heard, that Phoenix guy put the fire out by lookin' at it after they'd got the kids outta the building. That sounds faked to me."

That same reporter pressed on, asking, "So then you're saying that you don't believe these two might have powers beyond our comprehension?" Hercule opened his mouth to deny it, but as he started shaking his head, he caught sight of something approaching from his left, and froze. The reporters soon followed his gaze, and quickly scrambled out of the way as a green... something approached at high speed, slamming into the ground between the reporting crews and the podium, sending up a shower of concrete fragments; the more observent of the group could hear Hercule's girlish scream.

The green thing was soon revealed to be Saiyaman himself, lying in the impact crater, who quickly kicked off the black thing on top of him, flipping him over his shoulders and revealing him as Phoenix as he spun to his feet. Flipping up to his feet as well, the two stared each other down, but their concentration was broken by one of the terrified reporters asking, "Uh, so, why is it you two are fighting?"

It was Phoenix that replied, giving a shrug and, "Something to do."

"See?" Hercule cried from the safety of the podium, "It's this exact attitude I'm talking about. These two are a blight on my fair city, and..."

"Then you won't mind funding the repairs yourself than, will you Hercule?" Saiyaman asked, a grin tugging at the corners of his lips, "After all, if this is _your_ city, than surely its upkeep is _your_ responsibility?" 'Heh, you walked right into that one Herc...' Gohan thought to himself behind the mask.

Seeing the attention quickly shifted back to him, Hercule switched back to 'hero mode', laughing his annoying horselaugh and bellowing, "Of course I'll pay for any and all damages to the city. Anything for my people."

"Well then, with that out of the way, let's get back to business!" Phoenix said, voice rising into a shout as he raised his hands, beginning to fire a volley of blasts at Saiyaman as he took to the air, Saiyaman charging towards him and slapping the blasts out of the way; with Hercule's promise to repair the city with his own money, they no longer had to concern themselves with collateral damage.

Looking around at the destruction those blasts caused, the bold reporter asked, "Mr. Satan, what are your comments on the destruction these balls of light have caused?"

Stammering a bit, Hercule replied, "Well, it's a trick. They must have known where this press conference would be and planted bombs everywhere..."

Hercule was cut off was four red blasts came flying his way, striking him in various places: the first cut a path through his afro, setting fire to the edges of the trench; the second slammed into his face, setting his moustache alight; the third hit his chest, igniting his chest hair; and the fourth, and final, blast slammed into his crotch, setting... well, you get the idea. As the fight resumed, carrying the pair off into other parts of the city, the reporters could hear Phoenix's voice cry out, "Explain that away jackass!"

o-o-o

Videl quickly ran out to the front of the school, camera at the ready. She'd stopped to check on her father, finding him singed but physically unharmed; mentally, however, she had no doubt he was damaged, but whether that was from before or after the attack, or both, she couldn't say. Unfortunately, this pit stop meant she'd lost her quarry, so she returned to school in the hopes that, as their fight began here, it would come back, and she was pleased to see she had been right.

The two were stationary in the air, so she quickly zoomed in, finding Saiyaman holding both of Phoenix's arms, the two straining against one another. As Saiyaman pushed Phoenix's arms apart, she saw the red haired fighter lean back, before head butting the helmeted hero. Saiyaman's head snapped back from the impact, the orange helmet cracked, and it slipped off his head, falling to the ground below and, ironically, landing next to her, but Videl had eyes only for the man behind the mask.

'Holy shit! Gohan! Gohan is Saiyaman!' Videl's eyes almost fell out of her head, and if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she never would have believed it; suspected it, sure, but never believed it. She noticed a scowl on Gohan's face as he glared at Phoenix, who had drifted back from him, and watched as the two shifted into odd stances; Phoenix had both hands held back, at about hip level, while Gohan turned slightly to his right, cupping his hands by his right hip.

As red balls of light formed in each of Phoenix's hands, she noticed a blue ball appear between Gohan's, and heard him say something, almost like a chant: "Ka. Me. Ha. Me..." She saw Phoenix throw his hands forward, the two balls of light merging into one, but, while she could see his mouth move, couldn't pick up what he was saying. As Gohan threw his hands forward, a blue beam of light erupting from the ball, a red beam burst from the ball in Phoenix's hands, and she heard one more syllable drift down from Gohan; "HA!"

Videl's eyes bugged out again, and not from the impact those two beams of light made, but from the impact of what those five syllables meant. She'd already seen the lights enough today to almost ignore them, but what Gohan had said, what she assumed was the name of the technique, really hit home. 'Kamehameha? That's the name of that technique Son Goku used at the tournaments...' She almost felt faint as the thought process continued, 'the beam of blue light he fired from his hands... Holy shit! Little country boy Son Gohan knows the legendary Son Goku's technique!'

She fell back as if struck when the thoughts concluded, 'Sweet Kami! _SON_ Gohan! Gohan looks a lot like the pictures they had of Goku, and they even share the same last name... Wait! I remember now! Son Goku was rumoured to have wed the woman he defeated in the tournament, one Ms. Chichi Mao. Gohan's mother is named Chichi; why did I not see this before?' Slapping her forehead as the stupidity hit her, she cast her eyes back to the sky, a veritable fire burning in them, 'Gohan is Goku's son, there's no doubt about it.' A grin spreading across her face, she grabbed the fallen helmet, ignoring the rest of the fight and returning to the school building with one final thought 'I've got you now Son Gohan. I know your secret. And tomorrow, I'll get what I want, one way or another. Checkmate.'

To be continued...

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Author's notes:

Well, there we have it. Videl has put two and two together, and not come up with five. You didn't think all the misinformation she'd been fed would hold forever did you?

Just one more chapter to go. For those confused about the previous chapter (if one person says something, ten people are thinking it) it was meant as a wrap-up of some of the alternate world intros from the previous chapters (1-26, excluding 14 and 21), thus each section is independant of each other.

Tune in next time to see this series come to a close. I'll be including some information about the next series, as well as wrapping up this one, so, don't miss it.


	33. The Cycle Repeats Anew

--- When Worlds Collide ---

Chapter 30 - The Cycle Repeats Anew

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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Gohan's footfalls echoed throughout the otherwise empty hallway as he strode towards class; he was late, and unfortunately the best excuse he had was sleeping in. After all, he couldn't exactly tell the school the reason he was late was because he'd been recovering from the beating 'Phoenix' gave him whilst they fought across the city: A, they'd never believe him, and B, even if they did, that would just point him out as Saiyaman.

Gohan winced slightly as the strap of his bag rubbed up against a burnt spot on his shoulder, where a blast of Kaen's had glanced him to day before. The fight had raged on well past school hours, and it only ended because, when seven o'clock rolled around, they had mutually agreed to end the fight on account of hunger. Gohan could honestly say he hadn't had a sparring session that intense since his time in the Room of Spirit and Time with his father.

His mother had been... rather upset at him when he came home, to say the least. What never failed to amuse him though was that she wasn't angry because he and Kaen fought in the city, and caused a lot of damage in the process, but because he had cut school to do it, even if the only class he had left was PE; she figured that if she was going to teach, he should be there to listen, even if he didn't learn anything.

She also hadn't been too happy when he asked for the next month off to train for the tournament; while she had no problem with him competing (she couldn't really stop him when she herself was a former entrant), she didn't want him cutting into his schooling just to train when he could train after classes. He wanted four weeks, she wanted none, so, as usual, they met in the middle; in two weeks time, Gohan would be taking a fortnight's leave of absence to train. He couldn't wait. He was even planning on visiting the gang after school today and seeing if anyone else wanted to compete, to make a real showing.

--

Making a quick stop-off at his locker to collect his books, he noticed Videl leaning casually against her locker, located directly across the hall from his, watching something on the playback screen of a video camera. Running through his locker's combination, Gohan asked casually, "Videl, what're you still doing here? I would've figured you'd be in class by now."

Not looking away from her camera, the pig-tailed girl replied, "Oh, I was waiting for someone, so I decided to amuse myself with this video I shot yesterday."

In his hurry to get to class, Gohan failed to notice the fact Videl said she _was_ waiting for someone, not _is_ waiting for someone. Starting to walk away, he called over his shoulder, "Well, I better get to class, I'm running late..."

"Hold up a minute Saiyaman."

"What is it Videl?" In his tired state, he also missed her addressing him as 'Saiyaman'.

In her head, Videl was dancing in glee. She had Gohan exactly where she wanted him, and he'd even practically admitted it to her; even if she did have video evidence, she wanted to hear it from his own mouth. Smiling a little, Videl held the camera out, asking, "I was just wondering what you thought of this shot. Did I capture the moment properly?"

Indulging the girl, Gohan cast his eye over the view screen as play resumed, and what he saw there caused the blood to drain from his face. Videl had footage of the power struggle between him and Kaen the day before, the one where his helmet was knocked off, including a close up of his head. Looking back at Videl's face, and noticing the victorious smile on her face, he just commented, "Uh, yeah, I'd say you captured it well. My question is: what are you going to do with it?"

Sounding way too cheerful, Videl replied, "Well Gohan, I could do practically anything with this couldn't I? The press have been _dying_ to know who Saiyaman is, and now I have irrefutable proof of his identity. This has got to be worth a lot hasn't it?"

Gohan sighed; he knew where this was going. "What do you want Videl?"

She clapped her hands together, her eyes sparkling as she said cheerily, "So eager to make a deal? Well then, advantage, me. I want two things. One, I want you to compete in the coming tournament, either as yourself, or as Saiyaman. Either way it'll be an event to remember, with either Satan City's two major heroes, or the children of the past two world champions; oh yeah, I know that the legendary Son Goku is your father, but I understand why you never told me." 'Well, I suspect I do anyway...' she added to herself.

"Well, you're in luck Videl," Gohan interrupted, "I was planning on entering the tournament anyway. You're right, it'll be an event to remember this time around."

"Really? Awesome!" Videl cried, jumping into the air excitedly before remembering herself, coughing once in embarrassment before she went on, "Anyway, back to the deal, which is now down to one thing I guess. I want you to teach me how to fly, fire those beams of light, increase my strength, everything you can do."

"How do you know I can increase my strength?" he asked curiously; the other two he knew she would've seen at some point, but where did she get that?

"Well, I assumed you could." She replied offhandedly, "I mean, I've seen what 'Saiyaman' can do, and if you were running around with that kind of strength all the time you'd be constantly breaking things, so you can either increase your strength, or lower it; I just assumed the former."

"Actually, I can do both," Gohan supplied with a shrug.

A curious look on her face, she asked, "Just how strong are you anyway? What do you bench? What's your limit?"

'Bench? Oh right, she must mean weights.' "Honestly Videl, I don't know my limit, or just how strong I am. I haven't really had anyone to test myself against for a long time. That's one of the reasons why I'm entering the Budokai."

Videl nodded in understanding; she knew all too well the desire to know where one stood. Turning serious again, she asked, "So, what do you say? Do you agree to my terms... uh, term?"

Gohan hummed in consideration for a moment before shaking his head, replying with a simple, "No thank you."

"What?" Videl almost shrieked.

"I don't feel like being blackmailed," Gohan added with a shrug.

"But, if you don't teach me, I'll release those pictures to the press. Everyone will know who Saiyaman is before the day is out." Videl was getting desperate now; she was so sure Gohan was going to agree.

Gohan just smiled, "I don't think you will Videl. I don't think you could _hurt_ a _friend_ like that."

Videl just hung her head, both to hide her shame, and the tears forming in her eyes; her one shot, gone. "Damn..." she muttered under her breath, "You're right..." She turned to go, but Gohan's voice stopped her.

"However, if you can _ask_ me, as a friend, then, as a friend, I might reconsider my standing."

Videl felt her heart soaring again; despite the fact she had just tried to blackmail him, he was willing to give her a chance. Raising her head to look him in the eyes, the unshed tears still glistening in the corners of her blue eyes, as she asked, "Please Gohan... Please teach me how to do what you do. I need to prove myself once and for all... To prove that I am my own person, not my father's little trophy..."

"It's alright Videl," Gohan gently silenced her, wrapping his arms around her in an embrace she willed herself not to fight; her stubbornness was telling her she didn't need him, but her heart quickly kicked that down in favour of spending time with her crush. "I understand." And he did too; after all, this was the second time he'd heard her explain her motives, but he needed her to ask him, needed her to break through the wall of her pride.

The two just stood there for a while, time meaningless, before Gohan broke the comfortable silence that had descended upon them. "Alright Videl, I'll train you, but I'll have to work out how..."

"What do you mean?" She asked, her head still resting against his chest; subconsciously, she felt they should have separated a while ago, her need for comfort passed, but... damnit, she was enjoying this. "Why can't you just teach me the way you learnt?"

Gohan let out a deep laugh, one that rumbled through his whole torso as he replied, "Because my sensei taught me by throwing me at mountains until I could stop myself hitting them." He felt, more than heard, her gasp of shock, before he replied, "Tell you what. In two weeks time I'm taking a fortnight off to train for the tournament. Why don't you swing 'round my place then, and hopefully by then I'll have a way to teach you properly."

She stepped back, fighting a sigh as the warmth of his arms left her, but a smile on her face as she said, "I'll hold you to that."

Smiling back at her, Gohan casually took her hand, starting to walk in the direction of class and forcing her to follow, saying, "Now come on Videl; by the time we get to class, it'll be over..." Sure enough, the bell _did_ ring before they made it to class, but being with Videl provided the perfect excuse. Settling down for the day, Gohan turned the events of earlier over in his mind no less than a dozen times before lunch, and again after, each time with a smile on his face. No matter how much more complicated his life became, and no matter what fate seemed to throw his way, in the end, everything went back to the way it was, and for the first time in seven years, Gohan felt that everything would be alright.

But, as everyone knows, the peace never lasts forever...

-Fin-

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Author's notes:

And, with one final, short chapter, this series comes to a close. As the first story I've written that actually got some good feedback, I'm a little sad to see it end, but all good things, et cetra...

At this point in time, I should wrap-up the little questions I've been asking, by supplying the answers to the final two:  
1. The second, more subtle, VGCats reference: Well, I said that this reference was _related _to Leo and Aeris, and who-slash-what is related to them? **_V_**incent and **_G_**ina. VG. I didn't choose to use the word 'related' for no reason, ya know?  
2. The hidden meaning behind the twins' (Rash and Tama) names: The breakdown goes something like this:  
Rash - Rasher - (Rasher of) Bacon  
Tama - Tamago - (Japanese for) Egg  
Thus, bacon and egg. Now, that wasn't too tricky was it? (Insert smart-ass grin here)

Now then, I do believe I promised some advance info on my next series. As I'm sure has been fairly obvious, it follows on after this one, and covers the World Martial Arts Tournament. Because I, in my idiocy, decided I wanted a challenge, I am planning on writing each chapter as a songfic. In fact, the series is entitled _'Disturbance'_ because I plan on using as many songs by Disturbed as possible; I believe I have plans for at least one-in-three, if not over one-in-two, chapters to use Disturbed songs.

Now, as the series hasn't been written yet, it's gonna be a little while before I start posting, as I like to have a little bank of chapters in case I slip up, to give me some leeway. As it currently stands, I'm going to begin posting either when I have at least the first **five **chapters finished, or on December 31, whichever strikes my fancy. I'm also going to be updating slower, a once-a-week thing if possible. Also, as not every chapter has a song planned for it at this time, there may be intermediate updates where I add a song I found appropriate to a chapter. As my readers, feel free to supply songs you think are appropriate for a posted chapter.

As it currently stands, I have **not **planned for any interlude chapters taking place between the end of this series, and the start of the next, but this can change at any time. However, my beta reader Ninja, user id 63422, has expressed an interest in writting about Videl's training, so if you want to see it, go poke him. In fact, poke him anyway, he's getting lax in his updates. If not, I can basically report that, regardless of what might happen during training, at the start of the tournament Videl and Gohan are still not together, and Videl still does not know Gohan's secrets. Well, the important ones anyway.

If anyone has any interesting ideas for events taking place either during the tournament, or before, please feel free to let me know, and I'll see if I can work them in somewhere. While I may have the complete skeleton of the plot fleshed out, my ideas for specifics are a little up in the air at the moment, so I'm open to suggestions. Worst case scenario, if I like the idea but can't use it, I include it as an omake.

I... don't believe there's anything else I need to say... Uh, thanks for reading, I guess, and hope you'll stick around for the next installment. Until then, arigato gozaimasu, and saiyonara.

EDIT (31/12/06): I just thought I'd add this little note for all those with update alerts for this story. For those interested, I have posted the first chapter of series 3 as of today. The title of this series is 'Disturbance, Book 1: Convergence'. And let me say, Happy New Year to everyone out there in the interwebs!


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